Wordless Wednesday!

Heading into the storm, oh brave and mighty ship!

Peek through the Smoke!

Over the past few months, several of my friends and acquaintances have lost loved ones. A mother, a father, a child. All too young to die. All from good God-fearing families. And though we prayed and prayed and prayed, they died anyway. Death is such a hard thing to take. Oddly, though we all know it will happen to us all, it seems so unnatural. That's why people who've lost a loved one go into shock afterward. It takes them a long time to accept that they won't see that person again.

Not in this life anyway. At least the hope of seeing them again in the next life brings some comfort to those left behind. Without that hope, I have no idea how people cope.  Call it a crutch, a fantasy, whatever you want, but that hope of another world beyond this one is what keeps me going day by day. It's not a frivolous hope or wishful thinking as some may say. It's a hope grounded in belief, which in turn is grounded in my relationship with God. And that relationship is more solid and real to me than most relationships I have with people.

So, what is God's perspective on death? Why, if He is such a loving God, does He allow good people to die young? It seems so cruel, doesn't it?

Good people pass away;  the godly often die before their time. But no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to understand that God is protecting them from the evil to come.  For those who follow godly paths will rest in peace when they die. Isaiah 57:1-2  NLT

Now, imagine you're in glass room filled with smoke. You wander about, talk to people, live your life, but everything seems a bit hazy.  Food is good, you have friends, a job, moments of joy, as well as despair, but in all of that, you sense something isn't right. Something isn't as it should be. There's got to be something more, something better, something beyond the smoky room.

Then occasionally the smoke clears for a second and you get a glimpse of a world beyond the room. A world of such astounding beauty, you can only stare in awe. Waterfalls, and crystal lakes and flower-laden fields, rolling green hills, blue skies and such glorious creatures as you've never seen. Then the smoke covers it and you plant your hands on the glass, begging for one more look.

Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. 1 Corinthians 13:11-12  NLT

We have no idea what awaits us on the other side of death, except for the few hints the Bible gives. But those hints are marvelous!  For more on that, check out my Millenial series.  

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,  and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT

 

But the point here is, why do we cling so tightly to our smoky rooms??  Why do we want so badly to stay?  If we knew what awaited us beyond the veil, we'd be begging God to take us home!  We'd be happy for our loved one who went on ahead of us. Missing them terribly, yes, of course, (I don't mean to demean in anyway the horrible grief of losing someone you love) but realizing that God,  foreseeing some future calamity would befall them, pulled our loved one of the smoky room and into the glorious world of eternity. They are so much better off than we are!! 

And we will see them again. If we have made the choice to receive the free ticket Jesus offers us as entrance. That ticket He paid for with His own life on a cross. That's all we have to do is receive it and then follow Him around the smoky room. Not to a boring life of drudgery or restrictions, but to a life as full as the smoky room will allow. And then one day, God will lead you from that smoky room into an unimaginable paradise.

Whether you've recently lost someone or not, I hope this encourages you and gives you hope. There is something not quite right about this world, but we are just passing through to something far better!

Winner of free Laurie Alice Eake's book!

If you haven't read the post on broken hearts by my good friend and author, Laurie Alice Eakes, you are missing something. Click HERE to read.. and also read the comments left by so many people dealing with incredible heartache. I was so moved. 

WINNER OF DRAWING was BONNIE!!  Chosen by Random.org   I wanted to thank you all for leaving your comments on this post. I read every one.. and several brought me to tears! I'm in awe of what so many of you have suffered and how God's love has seen you through. !!  What incredible testimonies! 

Join my Motley Crew!

SORRY, BUT ALL CREW POSITIONS HAVE BEEN FILLED AT THIS TIME!  Thank you all so much for applying!  If you'd like to receive a free copy of Forsaken Dreams.. please drop by Every Friday in February where I'll be giving copies away in my pre-release party!! 

In honor of the release of Forsaken Dreams in March, I'm in need of a few more crew members to join me Motley Crew. Before all you landlubbers start waving at me from the dock, let me tell you what being on my crew entails.

My ship, The Redemption, sets sail with each new book release, during which time the crew does their hardest work for two to four months after we leave port. We occasionally stop at a tropical island for a rest, but normally those first months are spent out at sea, being tossed back and forth by storms, attacked on all sides by enemies, and generally keeping the ship in one piece and sailing to our destination. So, I need stout hearty sailors who aren't afraid of hard work, who aren't afraid of our enemy, who love a grand adventure!

Privileges of joining me crew

• You will receive a pre-release copy of each of my new releases to read and review
• You'll receive a special title aboard the ship
• You will have access to a secret Facebook Motley Crew group where you'll meet other crewmembers, share lives and pictures and prayer requests. 
• You'll also have one-on-one contact with me and get information about my books before anyone else does, including personal video blogs and book trailers!
• You'll get your picture displayed on a special Motley Crew Pinterest board
• Crew members who preform above and beyond the call of duty will receive extra rations of rum (aka -- prizes!) 

Work required

• Reading my book and writing reviews on several online sites (list provided) within three months of book release
• When needed, posting messages on facebook and tweeting about me and my books (posts will be provided)
• Praying for me and the other crew members (Lord knows we need it!) 
• Handing out book-markers
• Being creative with other ways to help promote my book.

I'm looking for twenty good men or women to join the crew I already have. (US and Canada only sorry) If this sounds like the adventure you've been waiting for, then please email me at marylu_tyndall@yahoo.com with your reasons why you should be allowed on board!

Oh, and by the way, next month is my PRE-RELEASE Party for Forsaken Dreams. Every Friday in the month of February I'll be posting something about the book and giving away a free copy to some lucky winner.  So, don't forget to spread the word and be sure and come join the party!

Wordless Wednesday!

Beware the Monster Cloud!! 

Come up Higher!

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord.

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.  Isaiah 55:8-9

So often we read the verse above and shrug and say, Yes, God's ways are SO MUCH higher than mine and His thoughts completely incomprehensible to me, I might as well give up trying to understand Him or trying to figure out what He wants me to do or say or think.  
  
But this isn't really what the verse is saying. If you take it in context and look at the verses before it,  


Seek, inquire for, and require the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to the Lord, and He will have love, pity, and mercy for him, and to our God, for He will multiply to him His abundant pardon. Isaiah 51:6-7

God is saying.. forsake your wicked ways, get rid of your evil thoughts and return to Me and I will forgive you... because My thoughts are not your thoughts and My ways are not your ways. In other words, the thoughts and actions of unregenerate, sinful man are not and can never be the thoughts and ways of God. 

Yes, He is God and He is Holy and all-powerful and He deserves our worship, but He isn't saying here that we could never grasp any of His thoughts or ideas. In fact, if you look at what the New Testament says about the believer, you'll soon realize that we can, indeed, think like God. 

We have the mind of Christ
But we have the mind of Christ (the Messiah) and do hold the thoughts (feelings and purposes) of His heart. 1 Corithians 2:16 Amplified

We are seated in the heavenly realms

And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, Ephesians 2:6  NIV

Your mind can dwell on things above. Your life is hidden in Jesus

If then you have been raised with Christ [to a new life, thus sharing His resurrection from the dead], aim at and seek the rich, eternal treasures that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Col-3-2 And set your minds and keep them set on what is above (the higher things), not on the things that are on the earth.

For as far as this world is concerned you have died, and your new, real life is hidden with Christ in God. Colossians 3:1-3

Our thoughts and our lives are directed by God's Spirit, hence His thoughts become our thoughts
But you are not living the life of the flesh, you are living the life of the Spirit, if the Holy Spirit of God really dwells within you directs and controls you. Romans 8:9

I'm reading through the book of Acts right now, and every time I read this book, I'm always struck by how different those early Christians lived their lives then we do today. There are a thousand differences I could point out but the ones that are pertinent to this discussion are also the most important ones.

The early Christians lived their lives completely and utterly led by the Holy Spirit with all the gifts of the Spirit in operation.  Consequently the did things like:

• Phillip was instantly transported from one place to another in order to witness to people
• Paul went to this place or that place based on whether the Holy Spirit led him or forbade him
• People could foresee the future and prophesy about things to come.
• People were healed and delivered of demons, some even by simply passing within the shadow of the apostles as they walked by.
• Peter was delivered from prison by angels
• Earthquakes broke chains and opened prison doors
• Uneducated men gave eloquent speeches
• They spoke in languages unknown to them but that were known by others standing around so they could hear the gospel message and be saved.

http://alturl.com/frne7

Seems to me like these early Christians lived in a different realm than most of us do today. They lived in the spirit realm. They lived in the heavenlies with Christ. They knew the thoughts of God, received the instruction of God and lived their lives based on that knowledge and guidance day by day.  This is what Jesus died to give us...while we are here on earth and then throughout eternity. But so many of us wallow around in the mud, helpless, confused, full of doubt and complaints, fearful of the enemy, beaten down and discouraged.

How this must upset God!  How upset we will be when we get to heaven and see all we missed out on doing on earth for God!  All the excitement and adventure!.  The world is looking for something real. They are not looking for Sunday sermons and potlucks. they are looking for a people who are wholly devoted to God and who are led by His Spirit, thinking the thoughts of Christ and acting on them. 

Will you be that person? Will you come up higher?

Author Laurie Alice talks about Broken Hearts and gives away one of her books!

WINNER OF DRAWING was BONNIE!!  Chosen by Random.org   I wanted to thank you all for leaving your comments on this post. I read every one.. and several brought me to tears! I'm in awe of what so many of you have suffered and how God's love has seen you through. 

Many of you know that Laurie Alice Eakes is one of my favorite authors, so I am beyond honored to have her here on my blog today.  Her latest book, Choices of the Heart, is in my opinion, one of her most emotionally stirring. It is the third and final book in her Midwifes series, all three set in the early 19th century. I'm hard pressed to choose my favorite among the three, they are all sooo fabulous in different ways. If you've read the first two, you'll be thrilled to know that Laurie gives us a glimpse into the lives of the couples from the other books in this new installment.

Rather than waste time here with my own review of Choices of the Heart, if you're interested, click on this link from Amazon. And while you're there, why not pick up the book for yourself! 

For those of you who aren't familiar with Laurie Alice Eakes, she fulfilled her dream of becoming a published author with a dozen books and novellas in print and more on the way. A graduate of Asbury University and Seton Hill University’s Writing Popular Fiction graduate program, she also teaches writing and gives inspirational talks to women’s groups. She lives in Texas with her husband, dogs, and cats, where she enjoys long walks and the beach as often as possible, and knits—rather badly.

And now without further ado, here's a brief blurb on the storyline and a GREAT article by Laurie about broken hearts.

She thought she had left her old life behind . . .

Esther Cherrett comes from a proud line of midwives and was trained by her mother to take over the family calling. But when a terrible scandal threatens all she holds dear, Esther flees, taking a position as a teacher in the wild western mountains of Virginia. But instead of the refuge she was seeking, Esther finds herself in the midst of a deadly family feud—and courted by two men on opposite sides of the conflict. All she wants is to run away again.

But could it be that her past holds the key to reconciliation—and love?

In this gripping story of trust, deception, and bittersweet loss, you’ll discover the true meaning of choices of the heart.

How Do You Mend a Broken Heart

“And how can you mend a broken heart?

How can you stop the rain from falling down? …”

As I sit down to write this post and share some thoughts from Esther Cherrett’s point of view, that song runs through my head, for Esther has a broken heart, and rain has been tapping at my office window here in Texas for about eighteen hours. That’s all right. We need the rain.

Before I start on This old song, I looked it up and discovered that the same week the B.G.s had this song as a #1 hit, John Denver had #3 with “Take Me Home Country Roads”. What makes this interesting is Choices of the Heart takes place in what is now West Virginia. In 1842, it was pre Civil War and thus WVA hadn’t yet seceded from Virginia. Regardless, it’s still one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

That bit of 70s trivia behind us, let me talk about Esther Cherrett’s broken heart.

She isn’t spurned by a man she loves. On the contrary, Esther is as shockingly gorgeous as her father was in Lady in the Mist. She’s a wee bit spoiled, being the long-awaited daughter after a handful of brothers, and can be more than a wee bit arrogant.

Or she was.

And then tragedy strikes, and Esther is on the run. No one is after her. She’s not in physical danger. But her heart is broken, and she convinces herself everyone will be better off if she gets as far away from anyone who knows her and her past as possible.

Within weeks of fleeing into the Virginia mountains, Esther learns her past has caught up with her. Her secret is not a secret to everyone. She wants to keep running. . .

Esther keeps herself busy. She draws, she practices some of her midwife skills, she teaches, she learns music, she explores the gorgeous mountain terrain of southwest Virginia. She reads books. She does everything she can to keep herself from thinking about the past and planning on a future.

A future, you see, might involve losing her heart to love. Yet that heart is wounded, shattered really. Her belief in the goodness of others has been splintered. Her belief in the goodness of herself has been torn from her. No one, nothing, can mend her broken heart.

I wrote this book beginning in November of 2011 after a year in which I had seen my heart wrenched in two and then shredded again. My trust in someone was damaged so drastically, I didn’t think it could ever mend. It wasn’t the same situation as Esther’s, and heartbreak is heartbreak. And having suffered it, writing about it proved painful more often than not.

By the time I finished this story, though, my heart was on the mend, so I could show Esther finding her way back to wholeness, and it takes a great deal more than a prayer and reading one Bible verse, or even a lot of them. It took her seeing how others healed with the Grace of God, how others suffered and did not lose their faith, how others took Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 seriously and held one another up, and it took others learning the truth and still caring about her—flaws and all--for her to find her way back to the healing of God’s love and forgiveness.

Before I give too much of the story away, I divert from Esther to the general, here and say that, when one is truly suffering, when people say “Pray about it and Jesus will bring you comfort” feels like a brush-off. As true as those words are, when one is truly hurting, one needs a body with skin on, and that is why the Bible says again and again to comfort one another, encourage one another, reach out to one another. Though how we live our lives, live through our pain with our faith in tact, we are God’s messengers of how He heals broken hearts, broken lives, broken connections with the lifeline of God’s loving, forgiving Grace.

How has God revealed to you, His love and ability to heal a broken heart?

Laurie is graciously giving away a copy of ANY of her Midwife series. In order to enter to win, please answer her question in a comment and leave your email address. Print books only mailed in the USA. Outside USA, ebooks will be sent.

You can find Laurie at the following places. 

Website: http://lauriealiceeakes.com/index.html

Blog:   http://lauriealiceeakes.com/blog/

Wordless Wednesday!

Wishing this would happen with my own ship paintings!!! 

The time of your captivity has come to a close!

Thus says your Lord, The Lord and your God, Who pleads the cause of His people: “See, I have taken out of your hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of My fury; you shall no longer drink it.  But I will put it into the hand of those who afflict you,  Isaiah 51: 22-23

I love the Old Testament. Far too many churches these days ignore the richness of the Old Testament and only focus on the New.  Or they only concentrate on those stories that are really cool, or those stories that show God in a favorable light, like the parting of the Red Sea, Joshua and the fall of Jericho, Daniel in the Lion's Den, etc..    I've heard many people say that the God of the Old Testament seems like a real gruff meany compared to Jesus in the New. But we are told God never changes, so how can that be? 

The Bible is one of those books that you can't just take a verse out here and a verse out there and hope to understand it. (Or the God who wrote it) That's why so many Christians who only hear one sermon a week and who never crack their Bible, never really learn to know God.  Yes, some of the Old Testament is very hard to swallow. Stories where God opens up the earth and swallows up thousands of people, or where He wipes out thousands with a plague or where He orders an entire family killed for the father's sins. These stories tend to scare us into picturing God as a bully in the sky and if don't behave, He'll zap us. Nothing could be further from the truth!

I've read the entire Old Testament probably close to 20 or so times now. And you know what I hear in it's pages, through it's stories?  I hear the groaning and pleading of the broken heart of a Father who loves His wayward children so much, He would do anything to save them.  Time and time again, God extends His hand of love and blessing to His children, and time and time again, they reject Him and go their own way. It would be like you as a parent telling your kids to stay away from drugs or driving while drinking because you know they will get hurt, but they snub their noses at you and don't listen and run off and do drugs and end up sick and miserable. So, you do what any parent would do, you punish, you restrict, you try everything to get their attention and get them back on the right track.  

When the Israelites would rebel against God, He would wait years.. hundreds of years sometimes, trying to plead with them to come back to Him. His patience and love are astounding!!  Then finally, He had to punish them. There was no other way to get their attention, so He would allow some other nation to come conquer them and take them captive. But like any punishment, it wouldn't last forever. God ALWAYS redeems His people. Verse after verse and chapter after chapter in the Old Testament show God's comfort and mercy and His promises to save and restore His people. 

So, why do I tell you this? Because God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He deals with us the same way.  When we rebel against Him, He punishes us. But it is only for a time. When that season is over, if we have learned, He restores us. Let me get personal here. I spent 35 years rebelling against God. The consequences I suffered for that are still on going. I face my own captivity every single day. I suffer from it every single day. And I deserve it and much worse. But in my quiet time with God lately, I heard Him distinctly say that the time of my captivity is coming to a close. Then the next day I came across the verse listed above, which only confirmed what I'd already heard. Maybe you are still suffering the consequences of your rebellion. Maybe you've resigned yourself to it (A bad marriage, wayward kids, health problems, money problems) Maybe you think you deserve it and more. But you love God. You've learned your lesson and you're growing closer to Him.

God is saying to you. There is an end to your captivity. Just like with the Israelites, He will not leave you in Babylon forever. 


For you shall go out from the spiritual exile caused by sin and evil into the homeland with joy and be led forth by your Leader, the Lord Himself, and His word with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Isaiah 55:12

Are you an introvert or an extrovert?

And which is better?  This topic has come up quite a bit recently in my family because most of us are the dreaded introverts!  But what comes to mind when you hear the word introvert?  Here's what some people think:

• Introverts are shy 
• Introverts are self-absorbed and don't care about others
• Introverts hate being around people
• Introverts are nervous in social situations
• Introverts are insecure
• Introverts are socially awkward

How about you? Is this your impression of introverts? Would it surprise you to know that NONE of those statements are true??  Yet society has labeled us this way. Why? Because introverts make up only 1/3 of the population, and the other 2/3s who are extroverts do not understand us at all. ( by the way, my mother, my husband, and all six of my kids are introverts)

Extroverts are outgoing. They love being around people. They love talking and spending time with friends. They feel comfortable for the most part at parties and believe the more people, the merrier.  They prefer breadth rather than depth.. in other words, they enjoy a wide variety of experiences and people, rather than just a few intense ones. These are the people who have a gadzillion friends and always seem to be doing rather than thinking. Extroverts need to be social to feel energized.

Introverts focus more on inner thoughts. They like to think deeply about topics and need to ponder a situation to its fullest before making a decision. They tend to have a few, close friends, rather than a ton of acquaintances. They hate small talk and prefer discussions on important, deep topics with a small group.  Introverts need to be alone to feel energized.

One is not better than the other. They are just different. The extroverts tend to run the social part of the world. They get out and do, do, do. While the introverts tend to be the creative minds behind the scenes that help the extroverts know what exactly they should do. Of course these lines are blurred, but you'll find that many introverts are very creative.

Some famous introverts are: Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln, Bill Gates, Sherlock Holmes, Steven Hawking, Jane Goodall, Issac Newton, Clint Eastwood, Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan.

All that to say that I'm a HUGE Introvert. As a child, I always wondered what was wrong with me. Why didn't I enjoy the social activities of my friends? Why did I feel so tired after I went to a party? Why did I hate idle chit chat but got excited when talking politics or religion? Why, when my friends called to go out, did I prefer to stay home? Why did my alone time make me feel so good?  People thought I was shy, stuck-up, rude, unsociable.. and for years I thought that must be true. Now I know I'm none of those things.

I actually love people. I enjoy going out. I like parties, but I refuse to talk about the weather. I much prefer to discuss important topics. But most of all, I enjoy being alone. It recharges me and refreshes me.  I guess that means I have the best occupation being an author cause I spend most of my time completely alone. Just me and my characters! 

So how about you? Want to take the test?

True of False  (Test taken from The Introvert Advantage by Marti Olsen Laney, Psy.D)

1. When I need to rest, I prefer to spend time alone or with one or two close people rather than a group
2. When I work on projects, I like to have larger uninterrupted time periods rather than smaller chunks
3. I sometimes rehearse things before speaking, occasionally writing notes to myself
4. In general, I like to listen more than I like to talk
5. People sometimes think I'm quiet, mysterious, aloof, or calm
6. I like to share special occasions with just one person or a few close friends, rather than have big celebrations
7. I usually need to think before I respond or speak
8. I tend to notice details many people don't see
9. If two people have just had a fight, I feel the tension in the air
10. If I say I will do something, I almost always do it
11. I feel anxious if I have a deadline or pressure to finish a project
12. I can zone out if too much is going on
13. I like to watch an activity for a while before I decide to join in
14. I form lasting relationships
15. I don't like to interrupt others; I don't like to be interrupted
16. When I take in lots of information, it takes me awhile to sort it out
17. I don't like overstimulating environments. I can't imagine why folks want to go to horror movies or go on roller coasters
18. I sometimes have strong reactions to smells, tastes, foods, weather, noises, etc
19. I am creative and /or imaginative
20. I feel drained after social situations, even when I enjoy myself
21. I prefer to be introduced rather than to introduce others
22. I can become grouchy if I'm around people or activities too long
23. I often feel uncomfortable in new surroundings
24. I like people to come to my house, but I don't like them to stay too long
25. I often dread returning phone calls
26. I find my mind sometimes goes blank when I meet people or when I am asked to speak unexpectedly
27. I talk slowly or have gaps in my words, especially if I am tired or if I am trying to speak and think at once
28. I don't think of casual acquaintances as friends
29. I feel as if I can't show other people my work or ideas until they are fully formulated
30. Other people may surprise me by thinking I am smarter than I think I am

 If you answered
20-30 True  then you are a pretty strong Introvert
10-19 True  then you are somewhere in the middle
1-9     True  then you are extroverted.

Wordless Wednesday!

Though the sails look a bit ragged and the ship seems battle weary, she still sails onward, ever strong and ever resilient!!

Hearing from God - 10 minutes a day

Happy New Year!  I can't believe it's 2013!!  It sounds like something out of a science fiction movie!  Anyway, as I reflected back on 2012, I realize it was probably one of the "calmest" years I've had as a writer. I didn't travel for business at all, no conferences, no book signing tours, no research excursions. Plus I only had one book release, when normally I have two.  All that to say that I spent a lot of time at home, writing, reading, thinking and praying. My goal for the year was to grow closer to God, and I believe He slowed down my life last year so I could do just that. And you know what? I do feel closer to Him. I feel like I know Him just a tiny bit more. But it was in the silence and the calmness that I found Him. Not in the busy, hectic modern life we all lead.

And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.  1 Kings 19:11-12

I am fully convinced that one of Satan's strongest weapons against believers is Busyness!  Keep them busy busy busy busy with life and work and kids and activities. And don't forget all the NOISE.  IPhones and Ipads and Ipods and UTube and Facebook and Twitter and Instant movies and TV shows and Video Games! It's all nuts!  I've seen people carry on a conversation in person while they are texting someone and watching a video and playing a game .. all on their phones! There's so much NOISE everywhere. Sometimes I wonder if people aren't afraid of the silence.

What happens in the silence when you shut everything off and you are finally alone?   Then you are forced to think about your life, to think about what you're doing with your life and how you treat people and what's important in life. When you are alone, you are introspective... you start looking deep within you. And I believe most people don't like what they see. So  they turn on the music and the videos and keep themselves busy so they don't have to address the real questions of life.  Like, why am I here? Was I just an accident? Is there a purpose for life? If so, am I fulfilling it? Is there is a God? Is there life after death? 

But people don't think about these things anymore. Satan has defeated both believers and non-believers with the weapon of busyness. Non-believers so they will never seek God, and believers so they will never know God.

Jesus led a busy life. He only had 3 years of ministry to convince His followers that He was the Messiah. During that time, He was constantly surrounded by people wanting to be healed, delivered and people just wanting to listen to Him. Plus, He had His regular 12 disciples who ate, slept, and basically spent 24-7 with Him. Now, read what Jesus did:

He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.  John 6:15
And it happened, as He was alone praying, Luke 9:18
Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to the disciples, “Sit here while I go and pray over there.” Matt 26:36
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Mark 1:35
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. Luke 5:16
One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God. Luke 6:12

I believe Jesus not only spent time praying for others, probably mostly His disciples, but I believe most of that time alone with God was spent listening to what God was telling Him.... getting direction for what Jesus would do next.

The time you spend alone with God without cellphone or music or video or any distractions is the MOST IMPORTANT time of your day. If the Son of God felt it was important, then how can we not do exactly as He did?   I know many of you spend time in prayer each day, lifting up your requests to God. And this is good and necessary. But have you ever just sat still and silent in the presence of God?  It's so hard for us to do, isn't it?  Our minds are used to so much stimuli that they race around and around and we end up thinking about what's for dinner rather than listening to God.

I started doing this last year, and it has changed my life and my walk with God.  Can you spare 10 minutes a day to find a spot alone and just sit and think about God? Some of you may say.. but I have kids and my house is full or I work all day. Okay. Find a bathroom stall and sit. Go outside for a walk.  Settle your mind, clear your thoughts, take a deep breath and concentrate on God and on how good He is. Worship Him silently in your spirit and just sit and be still. If your mind drifts to something else, don't feel guilty, just bring it back to God. It will take some practice, but I guarantee you that if you keep doing this, you WILL HEAR FROM GOD.   He wants to talk to you. He wants you to know Him. He doesn't want just a one-way Santa Clause type relationship.

What the really cool thing is about getting to know God more is you start to be able to sense His presence elsewhere during the day. The more you know Him, the more you sense Him, the more you know Him, the more you trust Him, the more peace and joy you feel. It's incredible.

So, this new year, I'm going to set aside 10-15 minutes a day and turn everything off. And I'm going to sit quietly in the presence of God. Want to join me?

My New Writing Room!

After a few of our kids moved out of the house, we had an extra room. It's one of the largest spare bedrooms that sits near the front of the house, and my hubby decided to make it my writing office. For the past year, he's been working on the room, doing his best to make it look like a ship captain's cabin. He laid a beautiful oak floor, put in cherry paneling on the walls, hand made a built in book case in the closet, and finally put wood beams across the ceiling!  It took him a year of working on weekends, and finally it was done over the holidays. So I moved in!!!!  Here are some pictures of my new haven!!

   My gorgeous library. The book case in the center is the one my hubby made!  The painting to the left is an old one I painted. You can barely see the top of my cat, Hershey's, head at the bottom!

Here's my sea-faring corner, complete with my porthole on the wall and a beautiful painting of a ship battle (not one I did) 

Here's a close up of my sea-faring table. That's a replica of the USS Constitution. An18th century flintlock pistol sits to the left just before a telescope. In front of the ship is my 19th century cutlass, and to the right of the ship sits my Pirate Anne Bonny doll, that one of my friends, Pat Iacuzzi, made for me! Beneath the table is my lady pirate hat and my wooden treasure chest.

 Here is my authentic antique ship wheel!!

Across the room, sits my desk. Above it is my 18th century map of the Caribbean. On the wall by the door are my brig keys. To the left of the desk is my white board where I write down my story ideas. On top are my pirate flags and some paintings!

 Here are the beams hubby made on the ceiling! Cool huh?  Pictures of my kids and some more paintings sit atop the bookcase.

So, what do you think?  Isn't it perfect? I told my husband I was never leaving my room. It's the perfect place to create new adventurous, romantic, sea-faring stories!  

What about you? Do any of you have a room in your house that is just yours? A special place where you go to pray, create, do crafts, or just rest??