Monday, December 28, 2015

GOING FROM BLACK AND WHITE TO COLOR An Artist's story, Susan Harris

Today's guest is not an author but an artist. Abbotsford Artist Susan Harris shares some insight into her spiritual life as a painter.

Going from Black and White to Color by Susan Harris, 

As a budding artist I spend hours drawing and perfecting my skill. My own lack of confidence did me a service as well as a disservice. Working very hard I become excellent at creating a perfect portrait in black and white, however, it was not always enjoyable as I didn’t feel I had the time it took because I felt it had to be perfect. I denied myself the pleasure of creating and I wasn’t expressing my heart completely. I was stuck in black and white; not living and creating in color.

One weekend I went to an artist retreat with an Anglian Priest and his wife. He led the spiritual and she taught the art. Even though excited to learn watercolor and calligraphy, the first words that came out of her mouth made my heart sink. 

“Tonight we are just going to play as if we were at kindergarten.”

This is not what I signed up for but a surprising journey of healing began. By the end of the weekend I was bawling. A crack of hope began to open up this gift of creativity that would bring me from black and white to color.

The crack opened up even further one day as I was journaling my prayers. I kept getting distracted by drawing little pictures in the corner of my journal.

I sighed a prayer to the Father, “Help me focus on You!”

A soft and tender voice came to my spirit, “I made you that way. Go and paint your worship.”

Going from Black and White to Color, I let my worship pour out onto that canvas. #Christian #Artist Susan Harris   TWEET THIS 

With canvas, paints and worship music, I began. I let my worship pour out onto that canvas. The outcome was freeing and beautiful. Since then color truly flows with unique flavor, expression, beauty, joy and various styles. A deeper richer relationship with the Creator flows too with truths, insights, blessings, and intercessions. God speaks to me through my art. The worship I give to Him reflects back to me. We are co-creating and I have truly gone from black and white to color.
ABOUT ARTIST SUSAN HARRIS

Susan is an inspirational artist with a belief that art can touch people in ways that nothing else can. Each one of her pieces is created with the Creator and her goal is that you are surprised with hope, joy, love, warmth or a spiritual experience. Some have said that Susan’s gift downloads inspiration into their hearts!

WHERE YOU CAN REACH ARTIST SUSAN HARRIS 

www.artistsusanharris.blogspot.ca

604-776-0886

“The Arts can touch people in ways that nothing else can.”



Creative Expressions: Medium: Acrylic, Water Color, Pencil, Pen & Ink. Styles: Impressonistic, Expressionistic, Worship, Realistic Drawings, Illustrations, Cartoons. Caricatures.

Creative Experiences: Custom artwork: Paintings, Illustrations, Cartoons, and Album Covers, T-shirt Designs. Art Shows, Exhibits, Galleries: 10 shows & exhibits in Alberta, Show & Sale at “Old and Crafty Gallery” Cocrhane AB, Show & Sale at “Uniquity Creations” Kelowna, BC. Now: Show & Sale: “House of James” in Abbotsford BC.
Good Will: Painted for 3 Ghanaian Traditional African Kings. Contributions: Donated to Charities, Causes, Disaster relief, Worship Conferences & Churches

Creative Services:
Custom Artwork: Paintings, Portrait Paintings, Memorial Portraits, Murals, Costumer Appreciation Gifts, Interior Design Clients, 1.00 per square Inch; 2.00 per square inch 4’ and over.
Custom Illustrations: T-shirt designs, Illustrations, Cartooning, Children’s books: $50-$300
Custom Drawings: Portraits, Homes, Animals, Pets: $300.00
“ART for a CAUSE” 50% to Cause and 50% to Artist for any of the above. Can include renting the artwork.
50 % Discount for Non-Profit Organizations












Monday, December 14, 2015

CHRISTMAS SHOWS US MIRACLES ARE POSSIBLE -- by Guest Gail Pallotta

My guest today, Gail Pallotta is doing a give away of her E-book Mountain of Love and Danger.  

At Christmas my daughter, husband and I tried to buy lots of presents for my sister. Usually, we gave her something big from the three of us and then each of us gave her two or three smaller gifts, so she’d have lots to open. Quite often she asked for Vitamin C, face cream, blue jeans and warm sweaters.
Christmas Shows Us Miracles Are Possible
When we turn impossibilities over to God, he works the miracles we yearn for.
***
I awoke sitting up in the bed in the middle of the night. Not knowing what had happened, I gazed into a quiet, calm room. Dim lighting from outside seeped through the blinds.
You have to take care of your sister. I shook my head at the strange words pouring into it. My sister had suffered a brain injury in a car wreck, but my mother took great care of her.

***
Fifteen years later both of my parents died. Another family member and the lawyers handling my father’s estate insisted on institutionalizing my sister. By then I had a child as well as a husband and lived in a different city. My insides tossed. My brain turned to scrambled eggs, and my heart broke into a million pieces because I was the only person who wanted to help her, but it was impossible.

I hardly could concentrate on tending to my family as I tried to understand how to change the course of events and fill this need. I certainly couldn’t leave my husband and daughter. Should I bring my sister here? We’d tried before the wreck, and she hated living in the city.

I phoned my sister to discuss a solution. By now she trusted no one in our family, and wouldn’t talk to me. Her situation tugged at my heartstrings day and night. I called again. When she failed to answer, I nearly crumbled. Where was she? Had they put her in an institution?

Finally, I found her, and yes, she had been permanently committed to a state facility. However, the nurse hadn’t realized there was another family member. My sister didn’t have to stay there if I agreed I didn’t want her to. I agreed immediately. After much conversation on my part and a great deal of paperwork, she returned to her home.

I still had no idea how to look after her. I pleaded with her to trust me and help me solve her problems. She had a friend who had no home who would stay with her if she had someone to handle her business affairs and talk with her doctors and social workers. Was this what God had told me to do fifteen years earlier? I hired a lawyer to ensure settlement of my father’s estate and put an end to the institutional talk. Until my sister’s death her friend cooked and drove her wherever she needed to go, and I fulfilled her other needs by phone.  

I had prayed constantly throughout this difficult time, but worried needlessly. God had a solution to this problem before it even existed. My husband and daughter often helped me help her. At Christmas I remember that God blessed us by letting my sister’s friend and us be there for her.  


The purchase links for Mountain of Love and Danger: 

Monday, December 07, 2015

THE FAMILY FEAST by Author Laurie Alice Eakes

My guest today is my friend and Multi-Award-Winning Author of more than two dozen novels, Laurie Alice Eakes.

The Family Feast 

by Laurie Alice Eakes  

Holidays are considered a difficult time to be without family for a reason. Not much is more depressing than seeing a table spread with all the traditional Thanksgiving goodies--dressing, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, fresh green beans, homemade rolls, homemade cranberry sauce, and, of course, the turkey, with pumpkin and apple pie waiting in the wings for later--and have just the two of us to share it.



Thanksgiving dinner is the only meal I actually enjoy cooking. I even love the leftovers. At the same time, I hurt to think that my family and friends were over a thousand miles away, as my husband’s job kept us in Texas for one more year.

Although I have no recollection of doing so, my heart must have cried  out for family, for one of my niece’s appetizers, for one of my sister’s desserts, a gift of chocolate from my friend who never cooks, and the conversation and laughter around all that food.

And the Lord heard my subconscious cry.

As I was thinking about shopping for Thanksgiving, whether or not I should order a turkey from one market or another, two young women from church, cousins, we knew from our small group, approached us and invited to spend Thanksgiving with their family.


Somewhere between twenty and thirty people filled this beautiful home, not to mention the tantalizing aromas of all my Thanksgiving favorites and more (like homemade samosas) At the end of the day, sated with food, conversation and laughter, I knew the Lord ensured I hadn’t missed out on a thing--not even the leftovers.
Latest novel by Laurie Alice Eakes

For nearly two hundred years, women in Ashley Tolliver’s family have practiced the art of midwifery in their mountain community. Now she wants to take her skills a step further, but attending medical school means abandoning those women to whom she has dedicated her life, the mountains she loves, and the awakening of her heart.
Ashley Tolliver has tended to the women of her small Appalachian community for years. As their midwife, she thinks she has seen it all. Until a young woman gives birth to a baby at Ashley’s home and is abducted just as she tries to take the dangerously bleeding woman her to the nearest hospital. Now Ashley is on a mission to find the woman and her newborn baby . . . before it’s too late.
Hunter McDermott is on a quest—to track down his birth mother. After receiving more media attention than he could ever want for being in the right place at the right time, he receives a mysterious phone call from a woman claiming to be his mother. Hunter seeks out the aid of the local midwife in the mountain town where the phone call originated—surely she can shed some light on his own family background.
Ashley isn’t prepared for the way Hunter’s entrance into her world affects her heart and her future. He reignites dreams of her own family she has long put aside in favor earning her medical degree and being able to do even more for her community. But is it commitment to her calling or fear of the unknown that keeps her feet firmly planted in the Appalachian soil? Or is it something more—fear of her growing feelings for Hunter—that make her hesitant to explore the world beyond the mountains?

ABOUT AUTHOR LAURIE ALICE EAKES


She lives in Texas with her husband and sundry cats and dogs. When asked what she does for fun, she says write. She also loves to read, go for long walks, especially on the beach, and listen to music, especially live music with her husband.

 She lives in Texas with her husband and sundry pets. She loves watching old movies with her husband in the winter, and going for long walks along Galveston beaches in the summer. When she isn’t writing, she considers that housework is a time to work out plot points, and visiting museums is a recreational activity.

©

Marti Corn Photography.

Monday, November 30, 2015

A PREPARED HEART by Guest Jodie Wolfe

A voice of one crying out:
Prepare the way of the Lord in the wilderness;
make a straight highway for our God in the desert.
Every valley will be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill will be leveled;
the uneven ground will become smooth
and the rough places, a plain.
Isaiah 40:3-4 (HCSB)

25 days till Christmas. Are you prepared? I'm not talking about whether or not you've put up the tree, strung lights around the house or decorated. Perhaps you are in the 'busy'ness of the pre-season. Shopping. Addressing Christmas cards. Baking cookies. Making sure each person on your list has that special gift from you.

It's so easy to get caught up in all the planning we miss sight of the reason why we celebrate.

JESUS.

It seems ironic but the times I've best prepared to celebrate Christmas occurred when my boys were quite young. We didn't have a lot of outside activities at the time so that helped some. One of the things we did started the first Sunday in Advent. Each year I would purchase at our local Christian bookstore a new Christmas devotional we could go through together as a family. I made sure to pick one with crafts and activities appropriate for their age group. Each night after supper we spent time working through the book.

While the activities were often simple, the scripture verses helped to prepare my heart (and my kids') for why we celebrate the holiday. Each verse pointed to Christ and why He came to this earth.

The kids are long since gone, but I still feel the need to prepare my heart for the holiday. I want to participate in activities which remind me of Him. I desire to fine-tune my list so I have time to ask Him to show me how I can be more like Him. I pray I won't miss out on opportunities to bless others in the process. As I make special gifts may I be reminded to pray for each recipient.

He is the reason why we celebrate. He is the reason why we prepare for the holiday.

Prayer
Prepare my heart, O Lord, so I might bless others this Christmas.

Jodie Wolfe loves writing stories about feisty heroines and strong, godly heroes. The power of story to influence lives and change hearts is what motivates her to weave tales that tell of the Savior’s faithfulness. Jodie writes for Home School Enrichment magazine and had a devotion featured on Christian Devotions.

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Monday, November 23, 2015

TOTALLY BLINDED SIDED--by guest Brooke Cox

My guest today is author Brooke Cox, and if you leave a comment below, with your email address spelled out, & you share this blog story on social media, your name will be entered in a draw for a paper-back copy of Brooke's book, a YA mystery for all ages, Deadly Doll.

I WAS TOTALLY BLINDEDSIDED by Brooke Cox.



I had never received that kind of phone call and I hope to never get one like that again. It was July 2013 and I was at work. When I answered the phone, the man on the other end told me my husband Tim had just been T-boned in a wreck.

A girl I worked with drove me to the crash site. We arrived there right after the ambulance had left. The state trooper said Tim’s injuries were not life threatening. That could mean anything and I imagined the worst, but when we got to the ER, he was laying on a bed in a neck brace. All he had were a few broken ribs in his upper left shoulder. I thought that was amazing until he told me something even more so.

When he had his wreck, two volunteer rescue workers were in the car behind him. The one who came to his door asked Tim if he knew his bible was lying on his leg. When Tim looked down, it was lying open as if he had been reading it. Now, I had gotten Tim that bible for Christmas. He kept it under his arm rest and would read it before he went into work.

But what got me was the fact that he was hit from the left. Everything else he had in the truck flew right, but the bible went left and landed open on his leg. After a couple of days, we went to the garage to get the rest of Tim’s stuff out of the truck. I made sure to look at the front seat. The arm rest was elevated and tilted to the right. That’s when I realized what had happened. At the moment of impact, the top of the arm rest flew up and the bible was thrown straight up. As it was up in the air, Tim was shoved under it. But why did  it land open instead of bouncing off his leg? It really was as if it was intentionally laid there. I asked him what part of the bible it was open to. He doesn’t remember. The volunteer who helped Tim held it for him as they cut him out of the truck and he put it in the ambulance with Tim.

I believe God did intentionally lay that bible there as a way of showing us that He had His hand on that situation. He is always with us and in control in all circumstances.

Here is Brooke's Book Deadly Doll. 

Adventurous twelve-year old Brooksie discovered a hidden room in her grandparent’s attic. She opened up an old hat box and found her mother’s favorite childhood doll wrapped up inside. Brooksie’s great-grandfather sent it from Alaska and it was believed to have burned in the trash pile years ago. After showing it to her father, he takes it from her. A few days later he was murdered and the doll becomes a faded memory until it reappeared six years later after a freak accident. What was it about the doll that people kept hiding it? Could finding the doll have played a part in her dad’s murder? If the doll had remained hidden would he still be alive? Brooksie and her best friend Darlene delve deep into the doll mystery which has them learning about a past that Brooksie never knew existed. Along the way, Brooksie’s thirst for adventure and acceptance has the girls stumbling on the edge of danger. What shocking family secrets might she find and could they change her life? Will she finally understand why God made her so different from the rest of her family and will it draw her closer to Him? Can Brooksie finally accept who she is?

ABOUT BROOKE COX:  I have been blessed with a wonderful husband Tim and we have been married for 30 years. And we have a daughter, Sara, and a miniature dachshund who thinks he’s human. And I love action and adventure. I want to be on the edge of my seat.

You can find Brooke Cox's book Deadly Doll at Amazon.com 


Brooke can also be found on Facebook as Brooke Cox and on Linked-in.

Monday, November 16, 2015

TIME TO TAKE THE BACKSEAT by Guest Linda Rondeau

“Do you think John’s changed much?” I asked my husband who calmly checked his watch. “I can’t wait to see him.”



We had traveled over 20 hours straight through the night to arrive for our son’s boot camp graduation, meeting up with his fiancée at the hotel and bringing her to the ceremonies with us.

Before parents’ arrivals, the newly trained soldiers were sent out on field maneuvers and were to return for the weekend ceremonies. Our instructions were to wait on the steps. “You sent us girls and boys,” the staff sergeant told us at orientation. “We give you back women and men.”

While waiting, I considered how quickly the children had grown. Step-ladders, there childhood experiences happened in triplicate. And now it seemed there was a mass exodus from the home. While my husband looked forward to an empty nest, I had dreaded the day when my children would no longer need me.

The first ting-a-ling that motherhood would be forever changed sounded when my daughter became engaged. Though she’d be living in another state, I accepted the loss with grace. Daughters tend to stay daughters even after they are married. They more or less add the role of wife.

Within a few months following her wedding came two college graduations. And what had been a soft distant ping now became a clamor as my oldest left for boot camp, a prelude of maturing before his marriage the following September.

 “I want my babies back! I want to put them in a playpen so I always know where they are, and I can cuddle them whenever I want.”

My husband grabbed my hand. “You still got me. You’ll always have a baby.”  

The camouflaged bus rolled around the corner. I peered at the disembarking soldiers. John’s fiancée stood next to me. I’d been so unhappy about my empty arms I hadn’t considered her feelings.  

“There he is!”  I shouted. My mother’s feet readied to fly, but I remained still as if some invisible hand held me in place. Then I heard the silent whisper quoting a familiar verse:

“Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh (Genesis 2:24 KJV).”

What are trying to tell me, Lord?  Do I no longer have first rights?

I sensed John’s emotional tug-of-war as his eyes darted from his fiancée to his mother. I could almost hear him ask the question, “Who do I go to first?” 

I clasped Melissa’s hand with mine. “You go to him. You should be the most important woman in his life now.”  She said a quick thank you and embraced my son. I knew in that instant, the time had come to take the backseat.
Linda's son as a stay-at-home dad
I’ve been a mother-in-law for more than twenty years. As I watch my children struggle with their own families, my protective 
Linda's soldier son today.
instincts still flare. God continues to remind me of that verse, to take the backseat and trust Him with my children’s lives.










Award-winning author LINDA WOOD RONDEAU writes blended contemporary fiction that demonstrates, once surrendered to God, our worst past often becomes our best future. Formerly from the Adirondack region, the setting for this any many of her novels, Rondeau now resides in Florida with her husband of nearly four decades. Retired from her long career in human services, she enjoys being able to play golf year around. 



A FATHER’S PRAYER by Linda Rondeau 




















COMING SOON: FIDDLRS FLING (Elk Lake Publishng)

CONNECT WITH AUTHOR LINDA RONDEAU 
her blog, Salt and Light

Monday, November 09, 2015

THE BLESSING OF IMPERFECTION by Guest Candee Fick

My guest Candee Fick is doing an E-book giveaway of her book Catch of a Lifetime just released November 2015. To enter the draw, please leave a comment below with your email address spelled out. Winners choice of a Kindle/mobi or pdf version. 

The Blessing of Imperfection by Candee Fick

I'll be the first to admit that I was an overachieving goodie-two-shoes growing up. As a pastor's kid, I felt a sense of responsibility to follow the rules because people were watching. Then in junior high, after moving to a new school and knowing nobody, I discovered a new identity as the smart girl and soon felt personal pressure to excel in the classroom. I only got A's from that point on and perfection became my security blanket. As long as I did everything right, I would be loved and accepted.

Fast forward many years to the time my husband and I were expecting our first child, and I took pride in the doctor's words that everything was going perfectly.

Until the day it wasn't.

Our daughter stopped growing and after a few tense weeks, I delivered a four pound five ounce precious bundle that captured my heart. I still remember the day we finally received her official diagnosis of a random rare genetic syndrome. Phrases like mental retardation and autistic-like behaviors rocked my world. My daughter would never get straight-A's or drive a car or live on her own. She could never be perfect.

And I loved her anyway.

Through the years of therapy and special education that followed I discovered a priceless truth about myself. No matter how hard I tried, I could never be perfect either. Yet God still loved me so much He sent His Son to pay the price for my sin. Today, even after our little Princess graduated from high school, my failures keep on reminding me how much I need a Savior and I've learned to embrace the freedom found in God's amazing grace. I don’t do everything right, but I’m still loved and accepted.

That's the blessing I’ve found in imperfection.

----

ABOUT THIS AUTHOR: Candee Fick is the wife of a football coach and the mother of three children. When not busy with her
day job or writing, she can be found cheering on the home team, exploring the great Colorado outdoors, indulging in dark chocolate, or savoring happily-ever-after endings through a good book.
  

CATCH OF A LIFETIME BY CANDEE FICK

He breathes football. She shudders at the very mention of the sport. After a tragedy involving a football player destroyed her family, athletic trainer and graduate student Cassie moves across the country looking for a fresh start, but a change in financial aid lands her in the middle of her worst nightmare. Meanwhile, rookie coach Reed worries his dream career will slip away as injuries plague his players and his star receiver teeters on the brink of ineligibility. As the two work together to salvage the season, sparks fly, and Reed must eventually choose between the game he cherishes and the woman he loves.


CONNECT WITH CANDEE FICK





Kindle


Monday, November 02, 2015

RIDING GOD'S WAVE -- by Guest Sherri Wilson Johnson

My guest author today is friend Sherri Wilson Johnson, and she is doing a giveaway of the ebook Song of the Meadowlark. Leave a comment below with your email address spelled out to enter the draw for this Ebook.

Riding God’s Wave by Sherri Wilson Johnson


I love the song Oceans by Hillsong United. It moves me to tears every time we sing it at church. It's my "GO" song. Whenever I'm battling with a decision, it never fails that we sing this song at church that Sunday, and I have clarification that I'm supposed to do what it is I'm unsure about.

The first time this happened, I felt called to go on my first mission trip with my daughter to a village in Jamaica she'd visited seven times. I wanted to go, but I was terrified of the flight, the curvy mountain roads, of everything. While singing this song, I asked God through the lyrics to “lead me where my trust is without borders”, to “let me walk upon the waters”, to “take me deeper than my feet could ever wander”. Right then, I knew I was supposed to go on the mission trip.

My next big struggle was with changing the direction of my writing career. It was stagnant, and I wasn’t making a difference. Several people had given me advice, but I needed to hear from the Lord. I was so burdened when I walked into church that Sunday last summer, and wouldn't you know, the first song we sang was Oceans. Once again, I asked God and he answered, “Yes. Do it.” My obedience changed the course of my writing, opened financial doors for me, and God has blessed me for taking that scary step.

Last year, I had the opportunity to begin freelancing for a national speaker and best-selling author, who was a friend of my one and only client. I wasn’t sure if I should accept the work because of time constraints, but again, God spoke to me through this song. I accepted the work with the intentions of using my earnings to invest in my writing career. A few months later, my husband fell ill and had to leave the workforce. Almost overnight, because of the connections God had made for me, I had five new clients. God lifted the burden of what we were going to do with my husband unable to work.

God has always spoken to me through times at the beach, so I know it's no coincidence that Oceans speaks to me. What’s greater than this song is the God who created the oceans and everything else in this world. This greatness makes me want to serve Him and to do my best to bless others, to be a world-changer and not live a mediocre life. I'm not asking for much, right? God has given me these desires, and He’s beginning to give me the opportunities to make them a reality. You see, the God we serve does things big. Universe big. When we ask Him to bless us, to enlarge our territory, to keep us from evil (the Prayer of Jabez) and to do big things, we can trust that He will. That’s the kind of God He is.

Song of the Meadowlark by Sherri Wilson Johnson 

Shamed by the uncovered truth about her missing husband’s secret life, Cora Buchanan sets out for home to mend her broken relationship with her parents. Her car breaks down in a small Georgia town, where women are going missing and being murdered. Cora seeks temporary refuge at the Southern Hope Ranch and is embraced by all except for Rex, a rugged widower who wants to protect his daughter from another loss. Cora couldn’t have predicted that being stranded would set in motion a series of life-changing events not only for her but for everyone she meets nor could she have known the significance of the song of the meadowlark.

PURCHASE LINK FOR SONG OF THE MEADOWLARK

ABOUT AUTHOR SHERRI WILSON JOHNSON 

Sherri Wilson Johnson is an Inspirational Romance novelist, speaker, and virtual assistant. She lives in Georgia with her husband and her Chihuahua, Posey, and they are empty-nesters. Sherri loves
spending time with family, vacationing at the beach, curling up with a good book or working on her current work-in-progress. She is the author of To Dance Once MoreTo Laugh Once More, and When Love Must Wait from her Hope of the South series, and Song of the Meadowlark from her Contemporary Suspense series, Intertwined. The second book in this series Secrets Among the Cedars, is due out in late 2015.

CONTACT SHERRI WILSON JOHNSON WHERE FAITH & FICTION COLLIDE

Monday, October 26, 2015

PEACE IN THE WHIRLWIND OF LIFE by Guest Carol McClain

My guest today, Carol McClain, is offering you a chance to win a copy of her latest release Waters of Separation. Leave a comment about how God blessed you in the little things, and you will be entered in a drawing to win a copy. Winner will be announced on this blog on Sunday. Please leave your email address spelled out in the comment. 

PEACE IN THE WHIRLWIND OF LIFE by Guest Carol McClain


God spoke to Job out of the whirlwind, and that’s generally where I try to hear His voice. In truth, God more often speaks to me like he did to Elijah, subtly. His blessings flow in the little things like a hummingbird wavering in front of me, daring me to nab him, in the challenge of Words With Friends from my adolescent granddaughter whom I could swear hates all adults or in a glorious sunset.
Lately, I’ve been ruminating on God’s blessings. My mind stretched to the whirlwind times. 

However, they were all long ago. God surely had to be blessing me now. And then I saw the munificence.

We’d just moved to East Tennessee from northern New York. I knew no one, had no church support, and no social contacts.

Neil and I asked for direction, and this is how God answered (in no particular hierarchy of order):
1.      
A wonderful church
We had a wonderful church in Malone, and missed them. We explored a few churches here, but none were home. In the end, our quest didn’t take long. With the first song of our third church, we knew we had a home.

And it’s proved to be everything we needed and everything we loved. Living here fewer than three months, we now find ourselves immersed in ministry and burgeoning friendships.

2.      Wonderful friends
I’m introverted (I’m an author, so no surprise there), so friends are hard for me to create. Instantly, Wilma took me under her wing and introduced me to Dixie who loves books, Annie who loves hiking, and Celebrate Recovery where I’m training to minister. My social calendar is now filled with more than doctor or vet appointments.

3.      Writing friends
ACFW offers a wealth of writing help. I inquired about writing groups in Knoxville. Paula had been trying to start one. My post rallied the ladies, and this week we will meet for the third time in what hopes to be a long commitment.

4.      Some of the most glorious scenery in the country.

Our home faces the Cumberland Mountains. Every day, the scene changes as fog roll in, the sun sets or clouds play tag on the mountain tops. The flowers blossom in abundance—and now, in September, I have irises blooming again! I reach out to a tree I didn’t plant and pluck more pears than I can count. I watch chipmunks and deer and walk along the jade green shores of Lake Norris and rivers that smoke in warm sunshine.

5.      Etc.
I call it etc. because my blessings are too many to count: a surprise fire pit from a husband who adores me, friends and family who make the two day journey to visit, a chance to teach at a community college...


Blogs have to end somewhere. I’ll end it here. Thank you, Jesus, for your gentle voice.

WATERS OF SEPARATION BY CAROL MCCLAIN 


Africa’s secrets resurrect the despair physician assistant Anna Haas buried in America. Her pregnancy and the discovery of boys bound by slavery in the cacao sector of the Côte d’Ivoire revive her childhood guilt. Her mother’s suicide claimed the lives of the two small sisters Anna had vowed to protect. 

Her failure to save them was unforgiveable. 

It will not happen with these boys. 

Her interference prompts a corrupt government to threaten the thriving mission and the lives of Anna and her friends. Her action also threaten her marriage. 

However, doing nothing will destroy her. 


WHERE YOU CAN CONTACT Carol McClain and purchase Waters of Separation

Barnes and Noble: bit.ly/1KjcauB