Inspiring Daring

I've Missed This

2012-01-28T01:09:00.000-05:00

Truly.

The clattering of my bracelets on my laptop's keyboard. (Did you know I named my laptop? Meet Griselda. It sounded like a nice fairy-godmother name and so she is.)

The slow and steady whirr of the machine as I write. (A lovely background symphony, don't you think?)

The pitter-patter of my fingers against the keys. (Or maybe pitter....patter, pitter...patter...pat-.... or something unpredictable like that.)

And the way the words pop up on the screen, delicious and strong, daring and bold, ready to be released to the world (most of the time, anyway).

I feel rusty at this strange, ephemeral thing called blogging. Which is probably why the pattern is lots of parentheses and question marks. :)

School is going fine. Usually, here, in this uncornered place called the third-week-of-the-semester, I'm still tearing my hair out, trying to decipher syllabi and assignments and interpret those looks on my teacher's faces (or the tone of their emails). At least, that has been my experience in the five semesters I've called myself a college girl.

Blissfully, this is looking like the most low-key semester I'll have yet. (And my hands shake as I write this. Will writing this make it wrong?) And not just because I like most of my classes or two of my teachers are that "anti-teacher" type that want me to learn something besides just spouting off facts and dates (love those kind).

I think I've matured just a little bit. Grown up just a little bit (mentally, not in stature). Figured out that it's not about the A's and approval...it's about serving Him with all those little moments that make up crowded days that make up this crazy life. And there is joy to be found in the crowds and the crazy.

Or at least, that's what I'm finding.

But that's just it. I have to find it. I have to look for it with eyes wide open and hands ready to receive the gifts.

I have to be willing to hear the music of hope cascading through my life.

And that's why I blog. Why I write. Why I dare to throw myself into wordcrafting.

And that follower counter over there tipped to 100 yesterday, which elicited a gasp of disbelief and a smile and a snort from me. Really? That many people?

Uh, wow.

I've perused some other blogs this week, discovered other corners of the blogosphere where kindred spirits flit and fly and leave their mark, and they have blessed me. Especially, this one, who challenged me to embrace the not-so-mundane. :)

So, all in all, I've missed this. But I'm back.

New Year... New Attitude... New Blog Post

2012-01-17T10:57:00.001-05:00

And only about two weeks late, right? :)

So this will (hopefully) mark my return to regular blogging, which hitherto has been put on hold in favor of syllabus-fever (normal for a new semester).

#86: a look back at Daring December and all the happy little moments that with it

#87: a look forward to a year spent counting the gifts He gives so generously

#88: treasured friends who e-mail and Facebook and Twitter me so many smiles

#89: making up new words

#90: the tangy smell of the peach-scented candle I've had since graduation

Surrender the Staff...or the Snake

2011-12-31T08:09:00.000-05:00

"Moses answered, 'What if they do not believe me or listen to me and say, "The Lord did not appear to you?"'

Then the Lord said to him, 'What is that in your hand?'

'A staff,' he replied.

The Lord said, 'Throw it on the ground.'

Moses threw it on the ground and it became a snake, and he ran from it.

Then the Lord said to him, 'Reach out your hand and take it by the tail.' So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake and it turned back into a snake in his hand."

Exodus 4: 1-5 (NIV)

“How do you eat an elephant?” Mom likes to remind me when I’m bemoaning the three hundred math problems I need to complete by Wednesday.

“One bite at a time.”

How do you live daringly...change the world…pursue your dream…fulfill your destiny?

One surrender at a time.

Don't you just love Moses? He makes for great movies and provides endless fodder for my overactive imagination.

What’s more, we both greatly dislike snakes!

But Moses wasn't just afraid of snakes, you know. He frustrates me with his inferiority complex and struggles with doubt, until I realize I’m annoyed because he is only echoing my own pleas to God.

Here we see him making the right choice (something he didn’t do much of in these beginning chapters of Exodus) and surrendering. In obedience to God’s command, Moses tossed to the ground the staff in his hand, the tool of his livelihood, the symbol of the new beginning he had made in Midian after those tumultuous years of growing up in Pharaoh’s royal household.

He surrendered.

Only to watch as the staff slithered across the ground.

Hold up. Wait a minute. That is sooooo not what I expected here! he may have thought as he darted as far away from the snake and the burning bush as he could get.

Can’t you just hear the complaint running through his mind? This is NOT the morning I had planned when I kissed Zipporah goodbye.

The problem is Moses forget that surrendering means... well, surrendering. It means relinquishing all our rights and laying them on the altar. It means giving up complete control to Christ.

It means that the staff can become a snake, it can bud, it can become whatever God wants it to be.

And oftentimes we don’t like that, because we already have plans for the staff.

Moses certainly did. He was a shepherd. He had a very real flock that needed a very real staff. No snake required, thank you very much.

When Moses saw just how powerful was His God and just what his little staff could become once God got a hold of it, fear grabbed him by the throat and held on tight.

How often do I do that? How often do I take my dreams to God, lay them at His feet, cry over them, pray a sincere prayer of surrender... then just as God is beginning to work His wonders, do His thing, and transform my little hopes and vision into His, I balk. W-Wait a minute, God. I think we need to discuss this first…

Two years ago I would never have imagined that writing a short devotional and having the guts to submit it to a ministry I've respected for years, would release a flood. I've watched as God opened door after door for me to write for several amazing ministries, complete a novel, the sequel to said novel, another, completely different, novel and attend a writer’s conference!

One year before that I would have never thought that I would raise money for Haiti in a read-a-thon or begin a blog.

One year before that…

And the list goes on and on…and I’m sure it will only continue to grow as the years are added to this heart.

After every surrender, God takes my trembling hand and transforms my ordinary staff and ordinary dreams, turning them completely on their head.

And I get downright terrified.

Sometimes I’m so excited that I jump and down, worshipping, shouting for joy, squealing until my dogs go crazy with me.

But most of the time, like Moses, I glance around, searching for a place to run and hide. I can't possibly do this. This is not what I bargained for.

Then God tenderly speaks to my heart. Oh, no, honey. You can’t be frightened yet. This is only the beginning.

And I cry, Are you sure? I’m not certain I can take much more.

There’s a cosmic nod and chuckle. I’m just getting started.

So I take a deep breath and follow Moses’ lead and ...reach for the snake.

By the tail.

Always by the tail.

Why is that?

He knows my fears. He hears my doubts. He sees my trembling. He holds my hand.

And He is a patient God. He doesn’t reveal His extraordinary plan all at once (He knows that I’d just faint). He gives it to me piece by piece, step by step, day by day. Tail first. If He had revealed up front all the craziness my life would be, I would have balked. But He didn’t. All He said was, “Write.” And I did.

Moses grabbed his staff-turned-snake by the tail end. He didn’t grab the head, where the full potential of its Pharaoh-plucking-power lay. Just the tail.

This month we've talked a lot about daring. It has been so much fun to journey through Daring December with you! But what is the next step? How to go about grabbing God’s daring plan? First, surrender. Then, take the one step you can see, do the one thing you know to do, or pray the one prayer He is leading you to pray.

Throw it on the ground. Surrender.

Grab it by the tail. Trust

And hang on. It’s a wild ride!

Daring to be Restless

2011-12-29T01:13:00.000-05:00

written by Sarah Elizabeth

What is this life of daring?

I believe it's living life as a restless bird. One who's longing to be more. This year God has been speaking to me over and over again about how I need to be a more daring young woman. Earlier on this year I was the proverbial "restless bird," but not in the right way. You see, I was restless in that I didn't dare to believe in myself and the gifts that God had given me. Instead I chose to let my fears and my worldly worries consume me. These negative restless behaviors were weighing me down, and they kept me from letting go and just flying.

After much pruning by The Master Gardener, many whispers to my feathery heart and going through the stretching motions of my comfortable secure, the Lord has made me once again restless. But this time it's in all the right ways.

Over the past few months I've found myself longing to become that restless-daring-more-than kind of young woman. I've become the daring one who longs to do more, to be more, to inspire more, to love more, to minister more, to know Him more and to pen more words than ever before. These are the things that have made this life of mine a daring one...and the restless spirit within me is now starting to take it's hold.

This kind of daring living requires us to live off of hope, to drink of the living waters constantly and to consume the bread of life, which fills our souls. Daring is found in the letting go, the releasing and living out of sweet dreams, and in the chasing after of everything more. A daring lifestyle will never be found in an overly complacent person, or the one who is too comfortably secure.

We've got to realize that it's okay to live life daringly. In fact I'm pretty sure God would endorse it, don't you? We must let our fears perish, and decide to live a life uncaged.

So, what are you chasing after?

I'm chasing after my dreams of becoming an author. (Wow. I actually said it!) Though I may sit here in front of a blank computer screen some days, not a word of inspiration to be found within my muddled brain, I dare to write anyway. I chase this daring restless venture, this seeking of more and this release of living out a story not my own, so that I might be a clearer reflection of Christ. I choose to let God be the One to write my story, though He never needed my permission of course, every day. Then I sit down and I write a story all my own and posts for you to read about this heart that wanders hither and yon.

It's in this everyday scrambling to chase after my word-filled watercolor dreams that I find myself desperately daring to be more.

Will you choose to be daring, too?

This everyday pursuit of my dreams, and my Jesus, is how I choose to live out this restless life of mine...daringly.

I'll admit that the daring life isn't always an easy one.

There are those days when it seems like it would be easier to just pull the covers over my head, and be content to only dream about the days I long for, instead of living them out. And I'm learning that anything worth living for will be hard to strive after.

But living a daring, eucharisteo filled, dreaming-every-second kind of life is one that satiates this hungry soul of mine, and it's the kind that calls this restless bird back home to nest, at the place where peace resides. My nest is found at the feet of Jesus.

So here's to the restless ones, the dreamers and the worriers...let's live a life of daring together!

Daring To Get Wet

2011-12-27T04:40:00.000-05:00

Or How I Risked My Life for Gone With the Wind.

The reason I adore country music? Story songs.

Since a lot of my road trips to the store, to the library, to the school are solitary, I'm the girl you see driving down the road, belting out a song only she can hear. I keep myself entertained.

I'd listen to story songs all day long. Even the ones that make me cry (you know, like when they don't get together or someone dies or something). I hate when there's no happy ending. And yet I'll listen to it 'til I know all the words and can sing along.

For this reason, I am glad for the genre-police that make sure every book I pick up that is Romance ends with a happily-ever-after or a literary equivalent or something-that-makes-me-smile-and-think-that-was-worth-the-read.

What does all this have to do with that crazy title, Daring to Get Wet?

The fact that I could have titled this post When Tried-And-True Sing-Along Drivers Ride In Silence.

I rode home from the library in silence today. Something I never do.

I don't know what others' library routines are, but I have a little system. I go with an idea of what I want (or a list as the case was today). I park and amble up the walk reverently.

The Entrance:

I shoot for the back as fast as these legs will carry me (which is pretty fast, thanks to my puppy's training). The new books rack, the tables full of students doing homework, the line of computers stretching across the room like icing on a cake, all a blur.

My goal is the shelves.

I dart into the first available empty aisle and breath in the loveliness of being surrounded by paperback, hardcover, big, small, wide, tall words.

After gaping for a minute this afternoon and surrendering to the giddy smile that came to my face, I gathered the items on my list (and a few extras that beckoned) and hunkered down in a quiet corner.

There I sat for about an hour, jammed into an uncomfortable chair that has got to be older than the library itself and looks it. Totally uncaring that my knee would hardly allow me to hobble out the door when I stood, I became engrossed in a YA tome, oblivious to the sky darkening in the window behind me.

And, oh, did it darken.

Shutting the book, I realized my mistake.

It was either stay or flee.

On my way to check out my books, I stumbled upon the DVD Gone with the Wind, which I have been wanting to watch anyway.

It went to the top of the stack in my arms, because it's plastic and wouldn't be ruined by the torrential downpour which met me as the doors slid open.

With flip-flops slapping (now you know I live in the South--flip-flops in December) and jeans turning to plaster, I walked across the parking lot.

Laughing.

The entire time.

A year ago, no, a month ago... okay, probably a week ago, I would not have reacted like that. Upon seeing those big, angry clouds crying on my town, I would have high-tailed it back into that library so fast, Gone with the Wind would have thought itself watched.

But I didn't.

Even though my truck sat over yonder, clear on the other end of the parking lot.

I only got scared once. I'm a clumsy, klutzy, trip-if-you-talk-to-me girl and about halfway to safety (i.e. silver truck with my initials in the back windshield) I realized me + driving rain might not equal a happy equation. Glancing down at Scarlett and Rhett, I mused that I could seriously injure myself falling trying to transport them to my truck.

Even then I kept laughing.

Raindrops pounced on the books, on my arms trying to shelter them, in puddles in front of me, and...

I tasted raindrops.

They tasted sweet.

When I finally jumped into the driver's seat, laughing, shivering, drying off the books with that washcloth Daddy said would be a good idea to keep in the glove compartment and I didn't believe him until today...

I realized that daring isn't about the safe, the comfortable, the routine, or even the happily-ever-afters.

"Going around under an umbrella interferes with one's looking up at the sky." -- J. Kosinski

Daring is getting wet and tasting the sweetness of the rain.

And daring is turning the radio off and listening to the music the rain makes.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T06:55:00.000-05:00

I could read the Christmas story, lovely and lilting, every wintery December day. Love, pure and simple.

Bask in it today.

So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were in the same country shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

“Glory to God in the highest,

And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, “Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they came with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger. Now when they had seen Him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this Child. And all those who heard it marveled at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told them.

Luke 2:6-20 (NKJV)

Courage

2011-12-22T01:45:00.000-05:00

Written by Rose H.

When I was young I wanted to do something big, something scary, something amazing. I wanted to prove to others (if not myself) that I was brave and strong. This was hard to do since I was short, scared of my own shadow half the time, and didn’t like taking risks. I wasn’t even sure what I would do to prove myself. Yet I desperately wanted be brave, overcome the odds, and make a name for myself.

As the years progressed I thought I had missed my chance. Other people got the chances to be brave and daring while (or so it seemed) I got left behind. I would be the cheerleader, not the one on stage. It hurt. I felt like a failure. I wanted to do something big, but I was stuck.

It didn’t stop me from dreaming though. In my dreams I was the shining actress, the beautiful socialite, or the brave woman who is overcoming all odds and saving the world (a girl can always dream right?).

Then God began to work on my heart and the attitude that I had. “I love you for who you are, not what you do,” God would tell me. “I want you to do what I have called you to do for now. Not try to 'prove' yourself.” It was hard news to hear. Would that mean that I would have to give up all my visions of being an actress? Saving peoples' lives? Making the big headlines? I realized that so many of these dreams were about me...my wants, my perceived needs, and my desire to do something great.

God's desire was that I love Him and let Him love me.

It was a hard battle. But God helped me to realize that the most important things are not what we do, but the relationships that we have with others. This lifted a great weight from my shoulders. No longer did I have to do anything to validate myself. I was loved for who I was.

Still, there were dreams. Dreams of being brave, doing something out of the ordinary, or having great courage. Now however I had given them to God. They were His to do with as He pleased. I tried to follow His lead. Sometimes I did better than at other times.

So this year God made some of the dreams come true. I got to write some plays, star in a play, sing at a small music festival, and travel (I’ll put off saving the world until later). But you know what? All of this is God working in my life. I could never do anything good.

Through God’s power, He is enabling me to be brave, strong, and daring.

He has filled the hole of my needs and wants with His love, grace, and peace.

There are still times when I shake a little. The future is uncertain. What if things don’t go the way I want them to? But then He reminds me of His promise, “In this world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have overcome the world.” There’s that word courage again. Taking it is hard sometimes, especially on “normal days.” There’s work to get done, to-do lists to accomplish, rooms to clean, blog posts to write, and family that wants to be thrown into the mix. It’s easy to get overwhelmed and want nothing more to run away. It’s on these days that God wants me to live with courage. To stand tall and work for God, knowing that He will make my hands strong for the task. He wants me to look upward and know that whether I get all of these things done or not, I should do them for Him.

So I’m trying to live each day in the courage He provides. It’s been an amazing journey so far. And I look forward to the years to come of learning how to live courageously, bravely, and daringly.

Why not join me?

The Summons

2011-12-20T10:34:00.000-05:00

The Summons

Will you come and follow me if I but call your name?

Will you go where you don't know and never be the same?

Will you let my love be shown? Will you let my name be known,

will you let my life be grown in you and you in me?

Will you leave yourself behind if I but call your name?

Will you care for cruel and kind and never be the same?

Will you risk the hostile stare should your life attract or scare?

Will you let me answer prayer in you and you in me?

Will you let the blinded see if I but call your name?

Will you set the prisoners free and never be the same?

Will you kiss the leper clean and do such as this unseen,

and admit to what I mean in you and you in me?

Will you love the "you" you hide if I but call your name?

Will you quell the fear inside and never be the same?

Will you use the faith you've found to reshape the world around,

through my sight and touch and sound in you and you in me?

Lord your summons echoes true when you but call my name.

Let me turn and follow you and never be the same.

In Your company I'll go where Your love and footsteps show.

Thus I'll move and live and grow in you and you in me.

words: John Bell

music: Traditional Scottish

A Daring Destiny

2011-12-15T01:18:00.000-05:00

I had the privilege to participate in the Blog Tour for my friend Sarah Holman's first book, The Destiny of One (you can read my review by clicking here). Sarah invited me to join the Blog Tour for the sequal, The Destiny of A Few, around the same time I asked her if she would write a guest post for Daring December. So we combined our ideas!

May I present my dear author-friend, Sarah...

What first inspired you to become a writer, an author, a wordcrafter?

I have always been a story teller. From a young age, I would create stories and tell them or act them out with my siblings. It wasn’t until I was eleven that I started my first novel, with the encouragement of my mom. I started it because I was having a hard time finding good books. When I finished that first book at age fourteen, I had found my passion. Ever since then I have always had something I am working on.

Who do you look up to as examples of courage?

Courage to stand up for what you believe in is one of the things I admire most in a person. My mom and dad are two of the most courageous people I know. They both come from non-Christian families and they not only have they chosen the path of faith, but are never afraid to make the right choice, no matter who tells them it is wrong. I will always be grateful for them being willing to dare to do the right (though sometimes hard) thing. What better example could a girl ask for?\

About becoming an author, was any part of it frightening?

Yes! Telling my extended family. Although my parents and siblings were supportive when I told them, I knew my extended family would not be happy with my career choice. There is also the fear that people won’t like my books.

Do you have a favorite Bible verse that encourages you to "live daring?"

I do! Whenever I am feeling down, I read 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, “We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.”

These verses remind me that no matter how hard things get, God will give me the strength to press on.

Finally, just for fun, how did you come up with the name of Maria's friend, Quint? (For my readers, Quint is one of my favorite characters!)

Ah, Quint. He is one of my favorites too!! To be honest, I don’t remember where I came up with his name. Most likely I heard a similar name and played with it in my mind. However, his character came from my love for the comical, tough-but-likable characters in movies.

Thank you so much for having me, Rachelle! --Sarah

Now About Sarah's Book!

On her quest to find the crown prince, Maria Morris faces an abundance of obstacles. Now a marked Christian, it will be difficult and dangerous for her to travel. The USF follows her every move. (as the vibrating chip in her arm irritatingly reminds her.) Yet knowing all of this, Maria puts her trust in God and, with the help of a few new friends, refuses to give up her mission.

She must find the crown prince. The Destiny Of A Few depends on it.

What I Loved

Just as with The Destiny of One, Sarah's latest installment in the story of Maria Morris's adventures is packed full of action and intrigue. I love a good book with a twisting, turning plot and The Destiny of One delivers!

Also, the characters are real, believable, with moments of victory and moments when they don't think they can go on. In The Destiny of A Few , Maria must stay one step ahead of the USF, who are intent on sustaining the openly anti-Christian government. With help from a few hilarious and heartwarming friends, she is able to travel to the planet of Rio to begin the next part of her mission.

However, she is confronted at every turn with conflicts and opportunities to exercise her courage.

With precious few confusing clues she must decipher and evil lurking in every corner, will Maria discover the secret to the Secret in time?

Will she come to realize that it is only when she comes together with those fighting for the same goal that victory can be theirs?

Or will the destiny of a few... be defeat?

View The Destiny of A Few trailer.

About the Author

Sarah Holman, a homeschool graduate, lives in central Texas. When not pursuing her passion of writing, she can be found taking long walks, reading, sewing or spending time with her family. You can find out more about her at her blog.

Share the Daring

2011-12-14T08:47:00.000-05:00

How are you daring in the everyday moments?

How do you say no to the nothing and live in the daring?

How do you pick yourself up when you've gone down that path?

How do you define the undefinable?

Would you care to share your un-definition of daring?

Share in the comments below what daring means to you or link up using the tool below!

And don't forget to put the button on your sidebar to spread the word!
Thank you!

"Holy Boldness and Daring"

2011-12-13T01:43:00.000-05:00

Defining the Indefinable

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

- Mark Twain

Faith is a living, daring confidence in God's grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times.

- Martin Luther

One of the great essential qualities of the kind of faith that will attempt great things for God and expect great things from God is holy boldness and daring.

- From Days of Heaven Upon Earth, quoted in Streams in the Desert by L.B. Cowman

On Failing

If at first you don’t succeed, you’re going about average.

- Leonard Louis Levinson

Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.

- Samuel Beckett

On the Everyday Daring

“I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble.” - Helen Keller

And, of course, the quote that started it all:

Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature…life is either a daring adventure or nothing.

- Helen Keller

The Merchant's Daughter by Melanie Dickerson ~ A Book Review

2011-12-12T09:25:00.000-05:00

The Merchant's Daughter

by Melanie Dickerson

Summary

An unthinkable danger. An unexpected choice.

Annabel, once the daughter of a wealthy merchant, is trapped in indentured servitude to Lord Ranulf, a recluse who is rumored to be both terrifying and beastly. Her circumstances are made even worse by the proximity of Lord Ranulf's bailiff—a revolting man who has made unwelcome advances on Annabel in the past.

Believing that life in a nunnery is the best way to escape the escalation of the bailiff's vile behavior and to preserve the faith that sustains her, Annabel is surprised to discover a sense of security and joy in her encounters with Lord Ranulf. As Annabel struggles to confront her feelings, she is involved in a situation that could place Ranulf in grave danger.

Ranulf's future, and possibly his heart, may rest in her hands, and Annabel must decide whether to follow the plans she has cherished or the calling God has placed on her heart.

What I Loved

I was super excited about receiving an Advanced Reading Copy of this book because I loved, loved, loved Dickerson's The Healer's Apprentice. My favorite genres are historical, fantasy, and romance. This author beautifully blends all three and adds a dash of...

fairy-tale.

What could get better than that?

{Remember, I am really just a Disney princess at heart.}

The Healer's Apprentice gives a whole new meaning to the fairy-tale of Sleeping Beauty and her latest release, coming just in time for Christmas this year, features a twist on my favorite fairy-tale of all time, Beauty and the Beast!

The Merchant's Daughter is a faithful portrayal of life in a medieval village and contains a balance between historical accuracy and the Disney rendition. Historical lovers will enjoy the glimpse into the fourteenth century and Christian readers will rejoice over the fact that the Beast learns the meaning of true beauty in an un-cliche way.

What I Didn't Like As Much

There's not much I can complain about with The Merchant's Daughter.

Except for the fact that it ended.

I thought the faith element was weaved in expertly, though a bit heavily. Also, the ending might have been a little rushed, in my opinion - but this can chalked up to I didn't want to say goodbye to Annabel and Ranulf just yet.

Why I Recommend This Book

An entertaining story that is sure to get you thinking...

The Merchant's Daughter transcends the traditional and offers a grown-up version of Beauty and the Beast for those of us who fell in love with the movie at age five.

Simple storytelling and a lovely plotline combine to form a classic I'll be keeping on my bookshelf and re-reading.

Disclaimer: I received an Advanced Reading Copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. I offer these thoughts in support of this stellar story.

Team Novel Teen is a group of bloggers dedicated to spreading the word about clean teen fiction. Check out other posts about The Merchant's Daughter by Melanie Dickerson by clicking on the links below, and check out www.NovelTeen.com for more information about Team Novel Teen.

The Librarian’s Bookshelf • Rachelle Rea • ADD Librarian • The Book Fae • My Life with a Mission • Katie McCurdy • Terri Harr • Book Nook 4 You • My Story Shelf • Sugar Peach • Jill Williamson

Being "Daring" in the Everyday Moments Part Two

2011-12-08T06:53:00.000-05:00

To read Part One, please click here.

written by Miss Rachel

David's example is one of full-out abandon to God. He doesn't run and hide under his bed. He doesn't stand by and wait for someone else to make the first move for God. Many times we say, "Not me, Lord!" and miss opportunities to be used for Him. :( I'm sorry to say, I have, too.

That girl standing by herself in the corner...I don't talk to her. The neighbors next door who don't know Jesus Christ as Lord of their life...I never open my mouth. The opportunities are everywhere, right in front of me, and because of fear and pride, I am silent. For you it may be another thing. Maybe you are bold for Christ when it comes to telling others about Him, but are slow to help others who need a helping hand. We all have our own strengths and weaknesses.

God puts many of us in everyday circumstances to perform simple, little, and sometimes menial tasks for His glory.

Never underestimate what God can do through these little things!

Daring to step out in faith to do what God desires you to do is being brave, courageous, strong, and daring!!! :)

I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty and joy to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble.

Helen Keller

To be fearless in the Lord does not require us to be great and powerful men, but only to believe in the great and powerful God.

R.J Rushdoony

We have lots of people in the Bible (and throughout history) who can inspire and encourage us to be daring: Look at Daniel in the lions den, the three men in the fiery furnace, Noah and the ark, Abraham with Isaac (daring to kill his only son because God told him to), Esther coming before the King to save her people, Moses following God into a wilderness, leading an entire nation of people and trusting that God would provide for them.

There are also stories of forgiveness like that of Peter. When Jesus needed him most, he turned and fled and denied he knew his Lord.

God will always give us the boldness to act when we need it most and He is always ready to forgive when we run and hide.

I take great comfort in that and I hope you do too. :)

Oh what I would do to have

The kind of strength it takes to stand before a giant

With just a sling and a stone...

But the voice of truth tells me a different story

And the voice of truth says, "Do not be afraid!"

And the voice of truth says "This is for My glory"

Out of all the voices calling out to me

I will choose to listen and believe the voice of truth

"According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him."

Ephesians 3:11-12

"The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion."

Proverbs 28:1

Together, we can be daring.

May God grant all of us the desire and the power to be daring for Him.

P.S. - Thank you, dear Rachelle, for inviting me to be a part of this! I enjoyed it and was challenged myself by what God had to share with me and what He wanted me to share in this post with you all. :) You are such a blessed friend and I'm so glad God has brought us together to be sisters in Christ! Love you so much! Hugs! -Rachel

Daring Adventure...or Nothing

2011-12-06T01:38:00.000-05:00

For a while, the thought of this post intimidated me. I suppose because I originally wanted to title it, "My Definition of Daring."

When I realized my mistake, I laughed to myself.

Daring is anything but definitive.

Fear is definitive -- allowing fear to rule in my heart prevents me from becoming all I'm meant to be.

Cowardice is definitive -- cowering in the corner while my King's battle rages on not only keeps me from God's plan for me, it turns me into the antithesis of His design.

Security is mostly a supersitition. It does not exist in nature. ...life is either a daring adventure or nothing.

-- Helen Keller

As much as I would like to fit my life into a neat little category, everything slops over the sides eventually and I'm forced to reevaluate and examine with an objective eye the things that mean the most to me.

Like family and work and writing and dreams.

I'm not so good at that objectivity stuff (it's the artist in me), so... often I forget or deny that life is a daring adventure, whether I'm living in an African village, Buckingham Palace, or a small southern town.

I've never been to those first two places, by the way. And that's my point. Sometimes I let myself belief in the lie that I can't possibly be daring where I am right now, with my stuffed dayplanner and put-on-hold dreams.

It's then that I forget about the daring adventure...and I live in the nothing.

That happens whenever I try to define the daring God calls me to live... or the God who calls me to live it.

God doesn't call us to live in fear, He calls us to live in faith. He doesn't call us to live in cowardice, He calls us to live in courage.

Here's the problem: there is no neat and tidy categorical closet where we can store our hopes and plans and dreams, from which God will throw everything together and ta-da! make a perfect, fulfilling, happy life appear.

Oh, how I wish that weren't true sometimes. And in those times I trade in the daring adventure for the nothing.

Like a bird soaring through the sky or a butterfly lighting for just a moment on the daffodil, the essence of daring is ever-changing for me.

One day, daring means speaking up when I want to be silent.

The next, it means biting my lip until it bleeds because they need a hug, not a sermon.

One day, daring means reaching out to the broken one and just loving them.

The next, it means to keep my nose in my chemistry textbook because He's molding and shaping me now in the midst of this great mystery I like to call college... for a bigger dream, a bigger destiny that I fail to fathom.

Like the bird or the butterfly, daring seems evasive sometimes. Just out of my reach.

Other times I feel like I could reach out and touch it, it's that close.

And then there are days when daring masquerades as foolishness and I want to run from it.

But when I run from His voice calling me...when I feel the fear creeping in...when I'm tempted to cower in the corner and cover my head...

He is persistent and faithful to pursue me wherever I'm hiding.

Because He is a daring God.

And He won't let me settle for the nothing.

I'm so grateful to Him for that.

Beautiful People

2011-12-03T02:56:00.000-05:00

1. Sum up your novel in five words, or less.

Adventure…Intrigue…Loyalty…Identity…Redemption

Okay, so that's not really a summary, but those are the words that are on my storyboard. :)

2. Novel title?

The Princess Imposter
3. Sum up your main character in one word.

Lanna: Brassy

4. Advice for newbies in three words?

Read, write, re-write

5. Tell us about your secondary characters, how do they affect the story?

I printed out this blog post by author MaryLu Tyndall about categorizing secondary characters. Works. Like. Magic. I love the way this gives me motivation for each and every word from each and every character in each and every scene.

6. Do you plan on staying up untill midnight on the 31st?

Maybe...if I do, I'll be ringing in the New Year bleary-eyed. :)

7. How many years have you done NaNo?

I haven't yet joined the NaNo-ing crowd, but this will be my first year participating in MyWriMo with Tarissa!

8. What came first, characters, or plot idea?

Actually, it was the first line that smacked me in the face as I was falling asleep. I entered the first 100 words in this GoTeenWriters writing prompt contest and it won!

"I was finally beginning to feel like the Princess I wasn't supposed to be."

9. How much prep do you do before November?

I didn't officially NaNo this year, but that first line haunted me and then that first 100 words flowed and Lanna wouldn't let me wait until the end of the semester before I started to dive into her story.

So I dove.

(That means my prep work was, um, zero.)

And now my word count is roughly 23,000.

So far, no prep is working for me. I get to run along with the mystery of it and there's very little room to insert a lot of heavy backstory up front (which I am prone to do) because it's still a little foggy yet.

10. Now be honest, how do you really feel about NaNo?

I would love to do it one year and win it! Alas, college will probably keep that from happening for a few years. :)

{written for Beautiful People}

Being "Daring" in the Everyday Moments Part One

2011-12-01T06:34:00.000-05:00

written by Miss Rachel

I was introduced to this girl last year...as soon as I saw her blog title I was like, "Oh, one of those girls." You know, the kind that say life is an adventure of living for the Lord? ;) Yes, it was my dear friend and the author of this blog, Rachelle! :D HeHe! Little did I know then how much this girl was going to be an inspiration and encouragement to me to be daring & bold in living for the Lord! {Love you Rachelle!}

I've never been one of those "daring girls." I don't like heights, I don't like sports, I don't like adventures. I like to live safe and quiet at home. I'm not a quiet, shy kind of girl, I just don't like change... or things where I have to step outside of my comfort zone. ;) God has had other plans for me over the years, though. He's turned my desires to have a quiet life into something I never would have sought on my own! Through blogging, church activities, His Word, my sisters-in-Christ, and other things, God continuously pushes me outside "my box" and into something that always challenges me to be a more godly young woman "after God's own heart."

God has His own perfect timing in everything I have found, and just as Rachelle asked if the MOHL ladies would be interested in writing for this event, I had been reading Max Lucado's book "Facing Your Giants."

Perfect.

It fits right in with what I want to talk about today. ;) Thanks once again God! :D Love You!

...In the first chapter of the book, he begins by talking about young David. Now just a shepherd boy, later to be a king. As the giant Goliath roams the battle field, David is coming to bring food to his brothers who are in King Saul's army. Just another ordinary day... As David overhears the giants threats against the army of Israel and against the Lord God, he is not complacent nor is he quiet or fearful.

***

"And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid....And David spake to the men that stood by him...'For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?'"

1 Samuel 17:24-26

"David shows up discussing God. The soldiers mentioned nothing about Him, the brothers never spoke His name, but David takes one step onto the stage and raises the subject of the living God."

Facing Your Giants by Max Lucado, p.4

"No one discusses God. David discusses no one else but God."

Facing Your Giants, p. 5

***

"And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came, and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine."

1 Samuel 17:48

Unabashed, unafraid...David "hurries"...he doesnn't take his time, nor does he turn and run the other way. He runs to meet the enemy in the name of the Lord. No sword does he carry, no armor does he wear. A sling and only one stone, his God with him, he runs full on to meet his foe.

I had to ask myself after reading about David running to meet Goliath, How often do I run away in fear of what God has placed in front of me? How often do I remember my big God and run toward the battle?

Daring means to be bold and courageous for the path God has put before you. But not all of us have these moments set before us for "greatness." Things don't always appear so black and white in this world. There are a lot of gray areas.

What I have learned is that God calls us all to forms of greatness, and it is different for each person.

Rachelle goes to college... I stay at home. :) We are as different as night and day and yet I know that God is working and using both of us for His kingdom. God puts each of us in different circumstances each and every day where we will have to make a choice to be daring and stand for God's way or to turn, hide, and run from fear.

{Please check back next Thursday, December 8th, for Part Two of Miss Rachel's post.}

Daring December: Introduction

2011-11-28T13:10:00.000-05:00

daring ('der-ing) noun: venturesome boldness

So I've had this little idea brewing in the back of my mind for a while now.

What if I set aside an entire month and talked about nothing but what daring means to me?

Then I realized that would be massively boring...

So I decided to invite some friends to chime in and share what daring means to them!

I am very pleased to announce that next month is Daring December!

Full of fun, laughs, heart-probing posts, and dives into the meaning of daring, I hope and pray that Daring December will prove a blessing to you.

The Schedule

Each Thursday a guest post will dive into...

what it means to be daring in the everyday

courageous with the big and little dreams

and just what a daring destiny is.

Throughout the month, I'll sprinkle some of my favorite quotes on daring and, of course,
my definition of daring.

Join In!

Being daring is a subject I feel strongly about, but I don't think I'm the only one. Would you care to share your thoughts? If so, leave a comment on any of the posts featured during Daring December or better yet, link up a blog post in the Linky (coming soon!).

Got Daring?

Share how you find ways to be daring in everyday life...

What you think a daring destiny is exactly...

Or about someone from your life, the Bible, or history who inspires you to be daring or courageous or bold!

Spread the Word

Grab the Daring December button by copying the code.

A most sincere thanks to the talented Julia who patiently listened to me ramble about what I wanted the button to be (bold - but not too bold, silvery, classic and feminine, but daring, too, of course, you know?) and, with her eye for design, whipped up the pieces of lovely you see gracing this post.

Now on to a Daring December!

An Interview

2011-11-25T09:56:00.001-05:00

This week on Meditations of His Love, all of the authors are being interviewed! It's so much fun to get to know each of these girls I thought I knew well a little better...and learn some fun surprises! :)

My interview

More author interviews

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T09:19:00.000-05:00

I'm thankful for the Word.

The greatest proof that the Bible is inspired is that it has stood so much bad preaching.

~A. T. Robertson

I'm thankful for His love.

I’m thankful that the love of God covers every tear, cut and fold in this paper heart

~ Natalie Lloyd

I'm thankful for those who serve.

"Only two defining forces have ever offered to die for you, Jesus Christ and the American G.I.; One died for your soul, the other for your freedom."

~ Unknown

I'm thankful for the authors I've read this year who have lived up to this quote:

“Authors who never give you something to disagree with never give you anything to think about.” Michael LaRocca

I'm thankful for all the writing I've done this year (even that which will never see the light of day).

“The only time I know that something is true is the moment I discover it in the act of writing.” Jean Malaquaiz

I'm thankful for dreams

God’s dreamers are always unpractical but in the end…their dreams come true. ~ Amy Carmichael

I'm thankful for time-tested wisdom:

Don’t push Christianity on people. Kind of let it settle in. Al Owens

Gratitude Isn't...

2011-11-23T01:17:00.000-05:00

Just so you don't have to twist every which-a-way to read this beautiful quote (like I did):

In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy.

-Brother David Steindl-Rast @ gratefulness.org

Gratitude isn't an emotion...it's the commotion swirling in my heart when I'm struggling to make sense of a crisis or a crazy schedule and yet I know, I know everything is in God's hands.

Gratitude isn't even really a choice...it's a carrying of my heart to the Throne of Grace and laying down the burdens, the dreams, the desires, and whispering "Okay, I think I'll just leave this here now," and not picking up the bundle again no matter how bad I want to.

Gratitude isn't seeing how foolish I look. It's jumping in a pile of leaves anyway.

Gratitude isn't random prayer. It's the realization that, yes, He really is in control.

Still.

Always.

Forever.

Gratitude isn't letting the little moments slip away. It's counting the gifts one by one and knowing they will never stop.

"You’ll come to learn a great deal if you study the Insignificant in depth."

- Chantel, hostess of GreaThings 2011

Gratitude isn't so much turning away from all of the darkness (and the faces crying out from the darkness) as it is looking into the dazzling radiance of His Truth.

What is (or isn't) Gratitude to you?

N is for...

2011-11-20T07:57:00.000-05:00

#76: Nights where the rain is like diamonds falling on the roof

#77: Not panicking when the to-do list is longer than my arm

#78: Never not having something to read

#79: A new look for a great ministry

#80: Nicknames

#81: Nickels found in parking lots

#82: Nifty shoes

#83: Writing 'Nother scene that makes my heart pound

#84: Not only planning new topics with great friends, but a totally new project!

#85: Nearly 100 Gifts counted!

Like My Mother Does

2011-11-17T08:16:00.000-05:00

When I saw the topic for today's GreaThings post, I knew exactly the lyrics! These words touched my heart about a month ago and I sang the song to my mom in my church's Talent Show last night, to her great surprise. :)

"Like My Mother Does"

People always say

I have a laugh

Like my mother does

Guess that makes sense

She taught me how to smile

When things get rough

I've got her spirit

She's always got my back

When I look at her

I think, I want to be just like that

When I love I give it all I've got

Like my mother does

When I'm scared, I bow my head and pray

Like my mother does

When I feel weak and unpretty

I know I'm beautiful and strong

Because I see myself like my mother does

I never met a stranger

I can talk to anyone

Like my mother does

I let my temper fly

And she can walk away

When she's had enough

She sees everybody

For who they really are

I'm so thankful for her guidance

She helped me get this far

When I love I give it all I've got

Like my mother does

When I'm scared, I bow my head and pray

Like my mother does

When I feel weak and unpretty

I know I'm beautiful and strong

Because

I see myself like my mother does

She's a rock

She is grace

She's an angel

She's my heart and soul

She does it all

When I love I give it all I've got

Like my mother does

When I'm scared, I bow my head and pray

Like my mother does

When I'm weak and unpretty

I know I'm beautiful and strong

Because

I see myself like my mother does

Like my mother does

I hear people saying

I'm starting to look like my mother does

So, of course, today I am thankful for my mother. Love you, Mama!

More Blog Awards!

2011-11-14T08:05:00.000-05:00

Today I am thankful for a greaThing that starts with the letter A: awards!

Thank you to Katy who awarded me these two awesome blog awards:

The Official Blog Award Rules:

the same for both awards

1. Thank and link back to the person who gave you the award. Thanks bushels, Katy!

2. Share 7 things about yourself.

3. Give the award to 15 other bloggers.

7 Things About Myself

1. I love dangly earrings and go hardly anywhere (except for work, since I work at a gymnastics center) without some sort of pretties!

2. My favorite book of the Bible is probably Isaiah...or John...or the Psalms... (decisions, decisions)

3. I'm a dog person. A serious dog person. (Ask my two puppies who aren't really puppies anymore but shall forever remain "my puppies.")

4. My favorite movie (at the moment...decisions again) is Disney's Tangled.

5. I'm a college sophomore (boring)

6. I'm writing my third novel (that's better)

7. I'm planning a big blog event in December. Details coming soon!

The 15 Bloggers I'm awarding...

1. Julia

2. Alyssa

3. Kim

4. Jessica

5. Tessa

6. Sarah

7. Jessica

8. Rose

9. Kim

10. Rachel

11. Leigh

12. Melinda

13. Mackenzie

14. Lhen

15. Ena

Congratulations, ya'll! And thank you once again to Katy!

R

2011-11-11T07:00:00.000-05:00

It's Day Eleven in the 30 Days of Thankfulness Challenge and today we're celebrating GreaThings we're thankful for that start with the letter R.

I am thankful for reading.

Because books are like wings.

Also, I'm immensely thankful for those who have served...Happy Veterans Day. And I'm so thankful for these challenges I've joined that are teaching me to live more grateful each day!

Gratitude Is...

2011-11-10T06:21:00.000-05:00

Gratitude is sinking into the desk chair and putting my hands on the keyboard. Writing after a long day full of life.

Gratitude is living with open hands.

Gratitude is even more living with open eyes.

Gratitude is smiling at friends who made the effort to be there, to pray, to say 'Hi' even though they didn't know how much it would mean to me.

Gratitude is melting when thinking of the loved one lost just this year and so glad God gave him to me for as long as He did.

Gratitude is backing down the drive...and gratitude is coming back home to the ones I love.

Gratitude is embracing His peace when my heart is stormy.

Gratitude is watching the flag flap in the wind even when the news isn't good.

Gratitude is knowing He loves me even when I'm not good.

Gratitude is so many things...what is gratitude to you?

This post was written specifically for GreaThings, which starts today. Would you like to join us in recounting the GreaThings He has done?

Also...

This is Day Ten in 30 Days of Thankfulness hosted by Rachel from Young Homemakers.

Writing Books I'm Reading

2011-11-08T08:25:00.000-05:00

"I wish Miss Madison would just leave off the book part of school. I wish we could just have art and music and dinnertime."

"Books are like wings, Lou," Wyeth admonished. "They take you places you'll never get to go in any other way."

- The Tapestry by MaryAnn Minatra

Books give you wings. Whether you're reading them or writing them.

Or reading about writing them.

I watched this movie the other day and I'm still humming "This Provincial Life." :)

I'm a bit daunted by the sheer volume of books on writing out there. So I only purchase (or check out from the library) those which I find recommended from multiple sources. Here are a few I've picked up.

Writing Books On My Bookshelf

1) The Art of War for Writers by James Scott Bell

2) Writing Magic by Gail Carson Levine

3) Writing for the Soul by Jerry B. Jenkins

4) Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King

5) On Writing by Stephen King

Thus far, The Art of War for Writers has made me laugh out loud, nod enthusiastically, go Whoa, and buy a binder I'm designating my writing notebook. In short, it's a gem.

This made me snicker:

Ray Bradbury was writing the screenplay for John Huston's film version of Moby-Dick. With the script deadline looming, Bradbury was stuck. And increasingly desperate. So he woke up one day and looked at himself in the mirror. "Behold, Herman Melville!" he said. Then he sat down and finished the script.

[page 43]

I've always enjoyed Gail Carson Levine's books (she wrote Ella Enchanted and other fairy tales. Need I say more?). That coupled with a good writing friend recommending her Writing Magic (which isn't just about writing about magic) convinced me this one had to hold promise.

The cover is lovely, too.

As a new Word Weaver, I received this in the mail. Thick and meaty-looking, I look forward to digging into the wisdom of an experienced writer.

You can write for the benefit of your soul. And you can write to reach the soul of another.

[inside cover]

I haven't read this one yet but it sits on my nightstand in anticipation of the day where it will share with me oodles of editing know-how. Just listen to this...

Knowing where to put your beats is not as important as knowing what beats to insert. Beats do more than control the rhythm of your dialogue. They are also a powerful way to convey your characters. Any good actor knows the importance of body language in projecting a character, and the same holds true in fiction.

[page 151]

I am so looking forward to On Writing. Since I'm currently in the market for a desk, the back cover copy got my attention, made me sigh dreamily, and think, 'Oh, my word.'

For years I dreamed of having the sort of massive oak slab that would dominate a room...In 1981 I got the one I wanted and placed it in the middle of a spacious, skylighted study in the rear of the house. For six years, I sat behind that desk either drunk or wrecked out of my mind...

A year or two after I sobered up, I got rid of that monstrosity and put in a living-room suite where it had been...In the early nineties, before they moved on to their own lives, my kids sometimes came up in the evening to watch a basketball game or a movie and eat pizza...I got another desk--it's handmade, beautiful, and half the size of the T. rex desk. I put it at the far west end of the office, in a corner under the eave...I'm sitting under it now, a fifty-three-year-old man with bad eyes, a gimp leg, and no hangover. I'm doing what I know how to do, and as well as I know how to do it. I came through all the stuff I told you about...and now I'm going to tell you as much as I can about the job...

It starts with this: put your desk in the corner, and every time you sit down there to write, remind yourself why it isn't in the middle of the room.

Life isn't a support-system for art. It's the other way around.

How about you? Any writing books you'd recommend?

Blog Award!

2011-11-06T06:37:00.000-05:00

Liebster.

At first, I thought it had something to do with those toys that are supposed to be teachers-in-disguise for kids.

I was delighted to learn that I was wrong.

Instead, Liebster, "which comes to us from the German," means dear, sweet, kind, nice, good, beloved, lovely, kindly, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome.

{Yes, that last one threw me, too. But it makes sense if you think about it.}

Sarah Elisabeth from Daughter of the King surprised me with this award last Sunday. Thank you, Sarah, my She Speaks friend whose NaNoWriMo tweets I secretly stalk. :)

Back to the award: I "oohed" and "awwed" over it and promptly bookmarked it to announce here at the earliest opportunity (a week later. If you're a college student, you'll understand.)

The Award's

Official Rules:

It's given to up-and-coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers.

1. Thank the giver and link back to the blogger who gave it to you. (Check.)

2. Reveal your Top Five Picks and let them know by leaving a comment on their blog.

3. Copy and paste the award on your blog. (Check.)

4. Have faith that your followers will spread the love too! (Check. *chuckle*)

Now for my

Top Five Picks

1. Sarah from The Destiny of One

One of my best writer buddies who writes for Meditations of His Love with me. I'm proud to say I knew Sarah before her book was released, so I knew her when (I've always wanted to say that)!

2. Lauren Nicole from With a Smile and a Song

Her blog is absolutely beautiful from the breathtaking photography to the Christ-infused words she writes.

3. Tarissa from In the Bookcase

This young lady never fails to inspire me with her passion for the written word. Have you checked out her Sharing Our Bookshelves linky yet? (Also, she has the best quotes!)

4. Katy from Book Reviews by Lady Katy and Legacy of a Writer

Katy and I "met" through Team Novel Teen and Go Teen Writers and now I regularly visit her blogs to get the scoop on the latest books. Need more tomes to add to your to-read list (or not)? Katy's your source!

5. Abbie from Abbie Writes

Abbie has her own style and that is an understatement. She makes me laugh and smile at the things we share about this obsession/passion/calling called writing.

Happy Sunday, everyone!

I Am Thankful For...

2011-11-05T06:48:00.000-04:00

When winds are raging o'er the upper ocean,

And waves are tossed wild with an angry roar

It's said, far down beneath the wild commotion,

That peaceful stillness reigns forevermore.

Far, far beneath, noise of tempests falls silent,

And silver waves lie ever peacefully,

And no storm, however fierce or violent,

Disturbs the Sabbath of that deeper sea.

So to the heart that knows Your love, O Father,

There is a temple sacred evermore,

And all life's angry voices causing bother

Die in hushed silence at its peaceful door.

Far, far away, the roars of strife fall silent,

And loving thoughts rise ever peacefully,

And no storm, however fierce or violent,

Disturbs the soul that dwells, O Lord, in Thee.

--Harriet Beecher Stowe

quoted in Streams in the Desert by L. B. Cowman

#76: poetry that speaks straight to my heart

#77: an orange-winged butterfly daring to fly straight up to my windshield

#78: the click-clack of this keyboard

#79: friends who know just what to say

#80: wounds that heal...by His amazing grace

{I'm participating in Rachel's 30 Days of Thankfulness project. I share what I'm thankful for on Twitter Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, on Facebook Tuesdays and Thursdays, and here...whenever. :) Want to join me?}

A Letter to Me

2011-11-03T08:00:00.000-04:00

There's a lot happening in your life, huh? Work and writing, family and friends, college and the crazy adventure that is...all of these things (and more!) consume your thoughts. I know you feel overwhelmed sometimes by all you have to think about. Keep this letter so you can read it when you feel discouraged.

"The mind of the sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace."

Romans 8:6

Don't you want to have a mind controlled by God's Spirit? A mind full of life and peace? A mind that is not harried or hurried by the events of the day...but rests in Jesus and His love? Sound too good to be true? It's right there in Scripture so it must be possible! But it probably will take a little work. Are you ready to start cultivating a mind that belongs completely to God?

I challenge you, Me, to surrender your mind to Him every day and every moment! Give Him complete control! Allow Him to breathe His life into you and energize you with His fathomless peace.

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things."

Philippians 4:8

I encourage you to use this verse as a test. When you are wondering, "Should I entertain this thought or not?" put the thought to the test!

Ask yourself, "Does it stand up to Philippians 4:8?"

Or "Is it true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy?"

"For the Word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

Hebrews 4:12

Another guide along this journey to a mind controlled by the Spirit is God's Word. Read your Bible to discern whether or not those thoughts you are thinking are pleasing to the Lord. Allow the Holy Spirit to judge the thoughts and attitudes of your heart. It may not always be an easy or comfortable process, but it will be worth it in the end, when you have a mind full of life and peace.

"Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus..."

Hebrews 3:1

The point of my letter is this: Fix your thoughts on Jesus! Your thoughts should be focused on God at all times...I want you to be aware of His constant presence. He has promised to never leave you nor forsake you. That means He is at your side even now!

Live like it!

Better yet, think like it!

While doing laundry, pray for your hurting friend. While washing dishes, praise God for the sunshine outside the kitchen window. During your study breaks, ask Him for His wisdom. Find ways to invite God into your thoughts throughout the day. Fix your thoughts on Jesus! This will result in a mind controlled by the Spirit, a mind full of life and peace. That's your desire, isn't it?

Sincerely,

Yourself

Torrent by Lisa T. Bergren ~ A Book Review

2011-11-01T07:00:00.000-04:00

This stunning finale (for now, anyway) to the River of Time series kept me up late into the night, but I didn't mind. Written in Lisa T. Bergren's winning style and as action-packed as the first two, Torrent holds an honored place on my bookshelf.

Summary

Would you sacrifice your future for an uncertain past?

Gabriella and Evangelia Betarrini are just two normal American teenagers. Normal --except for the fact that they time travel to fourteenth-century Italy, where they’ve lived in castles they’ve seen as crumbling ruins, become swept up in historic battles, and fallen in love with handsome knights willing to do anything to keep them alive.

They’ve returned to the present to save their father, just short of his tragic death, and now all four return to the place that holds the girls’ hearts, medieval Italy. But remaining there means facing great risk as the battle for territory wages on and the coming Black Plague looms. Will the Betarrinis truly be willing to risk it all? Or in facing death head-on, will they discover life as it was always meant to be lived?

What I Loved

Everything.

Truly.

But to be more specific: I loved all the action and how there was never a good place to set it down. The plot just kept on twistin,' the River kept on rollin,' and I was swept up into the fabulous story.

Perhaps my favorite part of the entire River of Time series was how I seemed to feel everything. When Gabi panicked, my heartbeat raced. When she felt relieved, my shoulders slumped. And at one point in this book, when it seemed like all was lost, I was almost in tears, fearing imminent tragedy.

I refuse to spoil it for you, but the ending is absolutely wonderful. No threads are left loose, yet you get the feeling the story isn't over.

Thankfully, it might not be...

Why I Recommend This Book

As I mentioned before, The River of Time series rocks and is, hands-down, the best series of books I've read this year. The faith element woven throughout the story blends beautifully and the romance is swoon-worthy. A strong heroine, 14th-century Italia, and great gulps of adventure provide an amazing read.

"'I think the trick to living fully,' I said, thinking through each word, 'is to appreciate what we have, day by day, regardless of what we know might come our way...If I live in fear of what might be, how can I truly live my life to the full in the present? And if I do not give myself to the day, to hope, to life, what do I miss?' I raised my eyebrows and shook my head. 'Life itself, I think. At least the way I wanna live it.'"

One word of advice: don't start reading until you have all three and a long weekend. :)

About the Author

Lisa T. Bergren is the best-selling, award-winning author of over 30 books, with more than 1.5 million copies sold. Lisa’s time is split between managing home base, writing (including a fair amount of travel writing), consulting and freelance editing (with a little speaking here and there). She’s married to Tim, a liturgical sculptor, graphic designer and musician. They have three kids–Olivia (15), Emma (12) and Jack (7). All five of the Bergrens make their home in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Extras

Do check out the River of Time Facebook fan page, as well as the individual pages for the leading characters (Facebook pages for characters? Awesome!).

Also, be sure to follow Lisa T. Bergren on Twitter. She's always tweeting fun things like giveaways and chats and such.

To read my review of Waterfall, please click here. To read my review of Cascade, please click here.

Two Life-Changing Words

2011-10-29T08:52:00.000-04:00

Thank you

Could there be a more wonderful way to celebrate this month of crackling leaves and cocoa, silky scarves and maybe even snow?!

My dear friend, Rachel, from Young Homemakers

(she also blogs with me at Meditations of His Love)

is hosting 30 Days of Thankfulness this year from November 1st through the 30th!

The invitation is to post some things we're thankful for on our blogs or Facebook or Twitter pages. I think I'll do a little of each, keeping up with counting the gifts, too.

Would you like to join us?

Rachel will provide a Linky on her blog each day for blog posts. She also has a Facebook page for the event.

I'm looking forward to it! A whole month of Thanksgiving! Tuesday can't come quick enough.

And since I have so much to be thankful for this Saturday morning, mind if I share?

#66: friends who encourage and build up

#67: passions He has given us for a purpose

#68: that happy sigh after reading The End (even though you didn't want it to end)

#69: a to-do list that's mostly to-done :)

#70: crisp autumn air

#71: writer buddies you can be semi-ridiculous with

#72: a three-year-old's giggle

#73: a late-night talk

#74: dreaming of December (It's almost Christmas! Yes, I am one of those people for whom it can't come quickly enough.)

#75: two life-changing words

Passion and Purpose: Part Two

2011-10-27T07:45:00.000-04:00

Am I good enough?

As I wade through the turbulent waters of requesting transcripts, saving for tuition, and waiting to transfer to the University of my choice, the Liar whispers:

What if?

And I start to drown.

What if survival at a bursting-at-the-seams community college isn't survival at a small, private, Christian university? You're jumping in over your head.

In over my head.

The lies go on but it all boils down to, Am I good enough? Can I do this? Really do this?

I dispel the lies, dive into the Word, and dream of a long-ago weekend when it seemed like everything was perfect and I was where I was supposed to be.

I drink in the beautiful truths on my closet door from this lady...

What if I fail?

I will give you victory (2 Cor. 2:14).

I don't have enough confidence.

I will be your confidence (Prov. 3:26).

I remember how it was to look in this lady's eyes and hear her say, "You are gifted."

I recall all of the other magnificent moments like being plucked out of the crowd to meet this fellow wordsmith and this one...

The water ceases to roar in my ears.

Because I remember...

Inspiring Daring is far more than the name of my online haven here.

Daring is where I am. 'Tis is my life story right now: exchanging the doubts for the daring, the impossible for the God who makes all things possible! Why I write, why I sing, why I can breathe when the fear and the dreams collide in one big crazy swirl.

This is where Inspiring Daring comes from... the heart that gives my heart purpose: His.

He is the reason I write and the One I write for. Always. He is the One pulling my hand so I'll jump out of my comfort zone. He's the One smiling when I discover the dizzying brightness of living in His will.

He's the One waiting, arms outstretched, for when I start to drown in the fear.

It's not me doing the daring. It's Him. Every moment of every day of every year.

Defying the fear. Daring to dream. Big. Passionately. With a purpose.

I try to bring others with me, gently, with encouragement.

I want to show others that if He can give this klutzy girl gymnastics...

If He can give this non-techie girl a blog...

If He can get her shy little self to a writer's conference...

If He can get her to the university she's always wanted to go to...

If He can give her a truck she adores and the courage to drive it...

If He can give her trembling heart Truth that knocks her socks off...

well...

He can do it for you, too.

So, go ahead, dare.

{To read Part One, please click here. And to visit the YLCF's blog carnival which inspired me to write these posts, click here.}

Passion and Purpose: Part One

2011-10-25T07:43:00.000-04:00

Writing is my passion.

Why do I do what I do? I have asked myself this before, but the answer stays the same.

Him. Only Him.

What is it that draws me to paper and pen?

Words

How is that I seem to think most clearly in ink?

Inexplicable

What is it that made me first admit it?

Trust.

Daring.

There is video proof that by five-years-old, I was already a Disney princess at heart (singing along with Belle of Beauty and the Beast through the TV). And I'll confess that fourteen years later, nothing has changed. I still swoon for fairy-tales.

It was for fun and with a friend that I first penned a story. We soon discovered we had very different writing styles and tastes for how an ending should go (me clinging tenaciously to happily-ever-after). But I still point to that year as when I first fell head-over-sneakers in love with the idea of creating characters, planning plots, and diving into storyland (as I called it then and call it now).

Storyland.

"To write is my joy and my work. Writing is the one place I feel I actually articulate the deep, aching things in my heart that I never seem quite able to say. To write is something God has asked of me. I think I finally understood this best in the context of story. Of realizing that my writing, even the nonfiction, goes toward narrating grace into this world. I can tell stories, and I can weave story out of the seemingly disparate events of life in our world. To be a woman of story is the work to which I want to give my life."

-Sarah, from Thoroughly Alive, in words from a year ago that have stuck with me

Is it merely that writing makes me feel closer to God, when I'm digging into His Word to craft the next devotional for MOHL or article for RadRev? Is it that I just like it?

Or is it something altogether bigger? For a higher purpose? Unto a higher calling?

May I circle all of the above?

I'm studying Communications in college even though I'd much rather be working on my next novel than a research paper. The story will wait. In fact, I choose to think that the story will be enriched for the time it has spent germinating in this brain of mine.

But I pull out that stack of novel and take notes and edit and dream of December (my favorite month because it holds Christmas and enchantment and the opportunity to edit!).

But why?

Why do I write?

Because I am learning to dream big because my God does. I'm learning to live with hands up and head tilted back, smiling at the sun and the One who loves me always. I'm happy in His will, but, best of all, I'm joyful in every opportunity He gives me to tell my story and write of my heart and His.

Inspiring Daring may be my tagline because my passion is leading others to know the God of extraordinary, but it is first and foremost the two words that describe where I am.

He is inspiring me to trust Him, the God of daring, of miracles, of radical, of impossible.

That is the soundtrack of my life, the lyrics that thread the air as I type, and the song bleeding from the pen alongside the ink.

I hear it also in the words of the one pursuing her destiny.

Of the one who quotes beautiful, simple, achingly-poignant truths.

The melody grows as I read the purposeful words of the one whom I have smiled at over seven or so years since she introduced me to Curly Girl and the YLCF.

The song swells as I pour over the words of dear friends.

Do you hear it? The call to daring? The invitation to embrace the fairy tales?

I do.

So I pick up my pen.

With passion.

With purpose.

{This post is written for the A Peek Into Your Passion with Purpose blog carnival hosted by Young Ladies Christian Fellowship. So hop on over there, browse through the passions and purposes of others, and maybe link up your own! To read Part Two, click here.}

Some Lessons In Writing I've Learned

2011-10-22T08:26:00.000-04:00

{This blog post contains scribblings straight from the author's ink-splashed heart.}

The other day I pulled out a short story that I wrote in high school. I flipped the title page back and started reading. The fear that this story, though maybe much beloved while writing it, would cause my nose to turn up now niggled at the back of my mind. After all, I've learned a little about writing since I was fifteen.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much I liked about the story. Seems that even by high school, I had learned a little about storytelling. Probably due to the copious amounts of reading I indulged in back then.

2 Things About Writing (that I've known for a while) :

1. Make the Main Character(s) real and relatable.

{Usually accomplished by giving them a quirk of some kind.}

In the book I just finished reading, The Colonol's Lady by Laura Frantz, the heroine has an endearing limp.

In that short story I wrote while a sophomore in high school, the heroine has a terrible head for directions and gets lost. Regularly.

In my first novel, the heroine is slightly klutzy (like myself).

2. The Main Character(s) must change

I'm not saying that I did this particularly well in the short story I perused the other night or in any other manuscript I churned out during high school. However, there was an inner struggle that took place in the main character. I felt kind of proud of myself for having known that way back when.

I dare you to try to find a book in which the main character does not change or go through an inner struggle of some sort.

2 Things About Writing (that I've learned recently):

1) Use Active Voice

I've come to detest the word "was." Whenever I find it in my own writing, I cringe. Needless to say, there were many, many, many "was"'s in that story I pulled from my high school years. ( <--- That right there was a sentence in passive voice.)

It is much easier to enliven a sentence, make it leap off the page, make it stand out when, as a writer, I choose to describe how anger makes a character feel. It's lazy and boring to just write,

"Jane was angry."

2) Give your characters motives

Have you ever been reading a book when you suddenly slammed the pages shut and growled, "I don't know what it is [insert character name here] wants!"

Maybe you haven't.

I have. Once.

While reading that high school manuscript.

The heroine knew what she wanted (and didn't want). The hero knew what he wanted (though it was cliche and boring, but we won't go there). But the evil villian?

No. Motive. At. All.

Except of course to stand there and look pretty until I needed him to kidnap the princess so the handsome knight could go save her. When it was time for that, he jumped in, completely willing.

But I have no idea why.

All characters need motives for doing the silly, stupid, annoying, delightful, wonderful, story-changing, mind-numbing, scary, daring, awesome, horrible things they do.

Always.

I'm still learning that.

Someone once gave this bit of writing advice: "No one is completely evil." (They probably tacked on, "No one is completely good" also, but I think we are all well aware of that fact.) Bells went off in my head because that perfectly illustrates that even the most evil villian, hardened criminal, or dubious bad guy is going to have a soft spot for something or someone.

My personal preference in books is for the antagonist to have a soft spot for someone. It raises the tension.

Regardless, though, there's going to be at least one reason that they've become cold and hard-hearted and willing to do whatever it is in your manuscript that they're going to do.

So what lessons are you learning about writing right now?

“There are so many different kinds of writing and so many ways to work that the only rule is this: do what works. Almost everything has been tried and found to succeed for somebody. The methods, even the ideas of successful writers contradict each other in a most heartening way, and the only element I find common to all successful writers is persistence—an overwhelming determination to succeed.”

—Sophy Burnham

Lost in Dreams by Roger Bruner ~ A Book Review

2011-10-21T09:37:00.002-04:00

Lost in Dreams

by Roger Bruner

Grace, hope, and healing intersect in the mountains of California .

From the moment eighteen-year-old Kim Hartlinger steps off the plane from a mission trip to a remote Mexican village, her journey takes a turn for the worse. As she collides with the biggest challenge of her life--and faith--Kim struggles with haunting questions and recurring nightmares...all while trying to hide a heart-wrenching secret.

Will Kim find the hope and healing she needs?...Or is her spirit broken beyond repair?

What I Loved

The author wastes no time in plunging me right into Kim's story, which, since I read this sequal to Found in Translation right after the first book, made it easy for me to follow along. In his customary engaging, sometimes humourous, somtimes surprisingly deep style, Roger Bruner explores heartache, grief, and guilt in this second installment of the Altered Hearts series.

Though personal tragedy and devestating loss catapult Kim into a dark season, her voice remains strong and she doesn't "go off the deep end" which I appreciated and half-expected. Instead, she is still herself, but she must deal with the pain that has changed everything around her.

What I Didn't Love As Much

Kim loved saying "that is," but since the book is in third-person it is written as "that was." Made me roll my eyes every time I read it (which was often). "Actually" would have worked just as well most of the time.

In chapter fifty-three, there's a significant shift from Kim's point-of-view to another character's. I felt like it gave me whiplash as I flipped pages trying to figure out what was going on and who was talking now. An unpleasant jolt.

Why I Recommend This Book

The author has mastered diving into unconventional situations. In the first book, Kim is in a tiny village in Mexico with a mission that is thwarted by a language barrier. In Lost in Dreams, she is in the mountains of California with a passel of strange characters, a best-friend triangle, and suffocating grief (I won't spoil it and tell you more than that). But she holds strong to her faith in God ~ not to say that she doesn't have doubts ~ and in the end confides in her father, who helps her see the truth.

Team Novel Teen is a group of bloggers dedicated to spreading the word about clean teen fiction. Check out other posts about Lost in Dreams by Roger Bruner by clicking on the links below, and check out www.NovelTeen.com for more information about Team Novel Teen.

The Librarian’s Bookshelf • Rachelle Rea • The Book Fae • My Life with a Mission • Katie McCurdy • Katy’s Reviews • Reviews by Jane • Jill Williamson

Cascade by Lisa T. Bergren ~ A Book Review

2011-10-20T12:15:00.002-04:00

This review has been a long time in coming. Ever since I first read Waterfall, I have been enthralled with Lisa T. Bergren's River of Time series. I am so glad that I won Waterfall in a contest because believe it or not, it probably would have been awhile before I picked it up on my own.

But I know that I would have sooner or later.

As I was telling a friend the other day, Waterfall , as well as the rest of The River of Time series, has everything that I love in a good book. One, it's part of a series. Which means that, yay, I don't have to say goodbye to these characters anytime soon! The fun continues!

Two, it has an amazing looking cover. I mean, really, who doesn't want to have that beautiful picture beckoning from their nightstand.

Third, Waterfall, Cascade, and Torrent each combine all of my favorite genres. Historical. Romance. Fantasy.

Now since this review is technically of Cascade and I've so far raved about The River of Time series as a whole, let me tell you about why I liked Cascade.

What I Loved

The first reason is that I loved Waterfall sooooo much. I had no sooner read The End in that fabulous beginning to the Bettarrini's story when I went on Amazon.com and pre-ordered Cascade and Torrent. I can honestly say I've never been that eager to know that a book was on its way before.

The second reason I loved Cascade is that it could stand on its own. Have you ever read a trilogy and been so disappointed with the second book, like it only seemed like a bridge, the author's way of getting you from Book A to Book C?

Cascade is NOT like that.

Full of roaring adventure, sweet romance, keep-you-turning-the-pages-late-into-the-night conflict, Cascade is the PERFECT sequal to Waterfall.

And I don't call a book Perfect with a capital P lightly, ya'll.

So in a nutshell, this is what happens in Cascade:

Gabi knows she’s left her heart in the fourteenth century and she persuades Lia to help her to return, even though they know doing so will risk their very lives. When they arrive, weeks have passed and all of Siena longs to celebrate the heroines who turned the tide in the battle against Florence—while the Florentines will go to great lengths to see them dead.

But Marcello patiently awaits, and Gabi must decide if she’s willing to leave her family behind for good in order to give her heart to him forever.

Now, go out and buy it. Seriously. You'll thank me later.

What I Didn't Love as Much

The only thing that I can possibly say that I didn't like about Cascade was that it ended with a fabulous, thrilling, heart-stopping, leave-me-gasping cliff-hanger. Entirely appropriate, but, oh, how tortuous! Thankfully, I knew that a copy of Torrent was already making its way to my eager hands. Unfortunately, I had to wait a couple more months for its release (but Amazon.com was generous to send it earler than I expected. I saw the box when I came home work and squealed.
Yes, squealed.)

Why I Recommend This Book

Cascade is unlike other YA fiction I've read (though I confess, I haven't read much contemporary YA fiction. Like I said above, I'm more of a historical kind of gal.) There is a faith element threaded through this book that I would have liked to seen explored more, but I think that the author did a beautiful job of allowing us to see Gabi's inner struggle with believing, while not beating us over the head with the fact. Honestly, I'd rather a book err on the side of caution than be out-and-out preachy.

Faith comes through strongest in the rocking story as you're transported from modern-day to 14th century Italia. Bonus: you see medieval Italia through the eyes of a 21st century teenage girl. How cool does that sound?

One word of advice: don't start reading until you have all three and a long weekend. :)

Stay tuned. Review of Torrent coming soon.

The Growing Place

2011-10-18T08:11:00.000-04:00

It's in quiet moments like this that the world of imagination broadens, deepens, widens

and

I

fall
in.

Have you ever rode a dirt road with the windows rolled down
Smelling that honeysuckle vine...
Have you ever heard a song that changed your life
Coming through the radio
That's where country grows
- Ashton Shepherd "That's Where Country Grows"

It's where stories grow, too.

In the playing of music, mostly movie themes, some battle hymns, some that come through the radio and bring a smile to my face and a tear to my eye.

In the amazingly addictive act of finding pictures that capture my characters. I had never even thought to do this until blog-hopping convinced me that so many do. It's fun! {I'll share some soon!}

In the writing prompts featured here that never fail to spark a story.

In dreams.

***

I'm at the editing stage. In the dark of dusk, the moon shining bright, I climb into bed with one of the stacks that make up my manuscript, a notebook, and a pen.

Sobering, really, when you hold your creation in your hands, black letters on clean white sheets.

The quote on the notebook reads:

"The world of reality has limits; the world of imagination is boundless."

- Jean Jacques Rousseau

Yes, the world of reality has limits. Deadlines. Study sessions. Sunday school lessons to prepare. A room to clean.

So I seize those quiet moments to cultivate creativity, remember the wellspring and fall into fairy-tales. Via music. With pictures. Through prompts. In dreams.

How do you broaden the world of imagination? Tear down the walls that block the borders and invite creativity in?

#61: seven years

#62: fresh pencils and a calculator that works faster than I

#63: fellow grammarians

#64: Fridays

#65: entire weekends spent unplugged

Hall of Faith ~ What Daring People

2011-10-15T07:13:00.001-04:00

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

Hebrews 11:1

So begins the Hall of Faith found in this chapter of the Scriptures. What follows is a speed-read through the miracles God has worked through the entire Old Testament as the names and feats of a myriad of unlikely people are recounted.

Daring people.

Daring deeds.

We're talking about this Hall of Faith on Meditations of His Love this week. I've taken a bit of a trip down Memory Lane and compiled the following list of links and flashbacks for your Saturday clicking pleasure. Enjoy!

"By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings..."

Hebrews 11:4

What I think God really wants.

"By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith." Hebrews 11:7

My fictional account of Mrs. Noah.

"By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going."

Hebrews 11:8

This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible. What greater faith can a person have than to trust in God for the next step and the next, not knowing where they are going?

My article, "Get Up and Go!"

My fictional account of Sarah (or Mrs. Abraham).

"By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, 'It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.'"

Hebrews 11:17-18

My thoughts on Surrender.

"By faith Moses' parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king's edict."

Hebrews 11:23

My fictional account of Moses' "Doubts About Daring."

"By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient."

Hebrews 11:31

My parallel between Rahab and myself.

A poem I wrote featuring Rahab.

My article about the importance of remembering (both the "great cloud of witnesses" and what God has done in our lives).

"The world was not worthy of them..."

Hebrews 11:38

Year 7

2011-10-13T07:21:00.001-04:00

Hard to believe that it has been seven years since I started doing this.

Oh, how time does fly.

From these timeless, world-tilting words:

Spend a little time with God each day. Even if it's not a lot, even if it's only five minutes, just be with Him.

- paraphrase version of a Sunday School teacher's advice

To these timeless, world-tilting words:

For many years I was bothered by the thought that I was a failure at prayer. Then one day I realized I would always be a failure at prayer; and I've gotten along much better ever since.

– Brother Lawrence

There's been a lot of growth in these seven years. I've gone from five minutes...

...to thinking they're the good-girl thing to do...

...to sheer desperation and anytime, anywhere.

Sometimes the silence of the morning beckons me like no other time of day. Sometimes it's wrapped in the dark of dusk that I say adieu to homework in favor of a greater calling.

I talk about quiet times often, but today I want to just sit back in awe and wonder at the good God has wrought, all because I took that long-ago suggestion for "just five minutes."

{By the way, if you want, I extend the "just five minutes" dare to you.}

Eyes on Sky

2011-10-11T07:09:00.006-04:00

#51: this little online haven, still here even after a week of mid-terms meant no blogging

#52: pink- and blue-ribboned cotton-candy sky

#53: watching him open the door for her, like a scene out of a movie

#54: beautiful truths about radiant purity and authenticity and redirections

#55: long walks, dog on leash, sneakers on gravel, eyes on sky

#56: answered prayers

#57: yellow ribbons tied on oak trees with yellow leaves

#58: donning sweaters and clogs. Who knew October could creep up so fast?

#59: small smiles

#60: fresh-baked cookies

Sometimes A Good Girl

2011-10-09T09:06:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I feel like a good girl. Sometimes I don't.

Sometimes I feel like I write well. Sometimes it is all I can do to fail at living well.

Sometimes I dance, happy, free, and delighted that He loves me. Sometimes I forget and try to do it all on my own.

Lord, I need You like peanut butter needs jelly. I'm just better when I'm with You.

Sometimes the to-do list is mostly checks at the end of the day. Sometimes it's not.

Sometimes I read what I've written and cringe.

Sometimes someone will come up to me and say, "That blessed my heart."

And all I can do is say thank you and look up in awe to the God who orchestrated all these "sometimes" from the beginning of time.

Then I remember it's not about the good times, the bad times, the in-between times, or the "sometimes."

It's not about being a good girl, a bad girl...it's not about this girl at all.

And it never was.

It is always, always, always, always about Him.

Lord, I need You like a pen needs paper. I try to make something beautiful, but it never works unless You're part of the picture.

So setting the "sometimes," aside this Sabbath morning, I'll walk into His house and worship.

Found in Translation by Roger Bruner ~ A Book Review

2011-09-30T02:34:00.001-04:00

Found in Translation
by Roger Bruner

Summary

Faith, obedience, and forgiveness intersect in a remote Mexican village.

When Kim Harlinger--eighteen and spoiled--arrives on a mission trip to Mexico and discovers, to her chagrin, that she'll be doing construction in a remote village without plumbing and electricity, rather than evangelism in a medium-sized town with a fast-food joint...she has only two choices. "Rough it" (which isn't exactly what Kim had in mind when she signed up for this trip) or turn around and head home.

Will Kim be able to touch the villagers' hearts with the Gospel? Or will her time in Mexico be up before she gets the chance?

What I Loved

Every once in a while I enjoy reading a book with a main character that I can't totally relate to (not at first, anyway). When this urge strikes, I usually turn to contemporary YA fiction because while at the end of the book, we may have more in common than I expected, at the beginning most contemporary teens are either self-centered or just on the wrong track.

On page one of Found in Translation, Kim Hartlinger is both.

Kim's story begins with the distressing news that she has missed her flight to Dallas/Fort Worth (though the author kept me rolling with laughter through this account). When she finally arrives at her destination, she finds one leader of her mission trip disgruntled and a passel of teens, all of which are aggravated with her for setting them behind schedule. That's the not the worst of it. Kim discovers that her plans for the next two weeks in Mexico are being radically altered. Instead of Silver City, they are going to Santa Maria, which boasts no beds, no facilities, and most importantly, no translator.

The mission team is well equipped to supply the citizens of tornado-ravaged Santa Maria with new buildings in which to live. But the language barrior leaves them unable to tell the villagers the reason they have come or Who sent them.

What I Didn't Love As Much

The author's style lends itself well to the story and Kim's accounting of the mission team is an enthralling one that kept me turning the pages. However, more often than I would have liked, the tense of the sentences turned from past to present. At one point I found myself flipping through the pages trying to figure out whether or not this book is a journal Kim kept throughout the trip or what.

Some important scenes seemed skipped over and towards the end I felt like Kim was telling me what was going on instead of showing me.

Also, there were two instances in which Kim talked to an Angel and the introductions to these scenes left me skeptical. Whether or not she really spoke with an Angel or dreamed it is unclear, even to Kim.

Why I Recommend This Book

Kim is exactly what the back cover claims: spoiled. At least as spoiled as the average American high school grad who has always enjoyed indoor plumbing and microwaves. The way that she develops relationships with the villagers, especially with her friend Anjelita, is endearing and portrays how the trip impacts Kim. She makes a dramatic turn-around from self-absorbed makeup-addict to deciding to major in Spanish so that she can return to Santa Maria.

Also, Kim learns a lot about faith, obedience, and forgiveness. Her relationship with God leads to an engaging (and two-way) prayer life. She exercises forgiveness with a trying fellow team member. Most importantly, though, is the "big mission" she takes on, wholly depending on God to make things work.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the author in return for an honest review.

***

Team Novel Teen is a group of bloggers dedicated to spreading the word about clean teen fiction. Check out other posts about Found in Translation by Roger Bruner by clicking on the links below and check out www.NovelTeen.com for more information about Team Novel Teen.

The Librarian’s Bookshelf • Rachelle Rea • Meditations of His Love • The Book Fae • My Life with a Mission • Katie’s Legacy • Katy’s Reviews • Reviews by Jane •Jill Williamson

What If I Hadn't Trusted God?

2011-09-29T14:23:00.002-04:00

The truth struck me hard. Right between the eyes the other day as I hurtled down the country road in my silver truck. I stopped singing along with the radio (yes, I do that) and let the thought carry me away into a parallel reality.

What if I hadn't trusted God?

I was on my way to the college. The vague awareness that I'm only one-and-a-half semesters away from finishing my associates degree (and transferring to the University I've wanted to go to for a long time) suddenly collided with the truth...

...that I might not be.

What if I hadn't trusted God, that summer after senior year? When age eighteeen suddenly seemed so much older and more adult than seventeen and I was loath to let go...when it felt like I had three scant months to make so many choices...

What if when I felt bombarded with the need to make so many decisions (that, I knew, would affect the rest of my life) what if I had thrown His soft whisper away...and held on with clutching fingers to the fear?

I planned to be an optician.

I was fascinated with seeing, sure that I could help people see by helping them be fitted for glasses and contacts (my eyes, as I affectionally call these devices that enable me to throw off my near-sightedness). I was sure that a steady job in the medical field was what I wanted.

Enter God.

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

Isaiah 55:8

{That's the part of the passage that is easy to remember.}

There wasn't a lightning-flash epiphany moment when I knew that I was wrong and my plans to pursue one road must be exchanged for another, grander (though bumpier) lane.

I accepted the fact that I am indeed fascinated with seeing, but of a different, deeper kind. A soul-seeing. One that so often takes place with a pen in my hand or a keyboard beneath my fingertips.

“The only time I know that something is true is the moment I discover it in the act of writing.”

- Jean Malaquaiz

And gently, gradually, I let Him pry open my closed fist. Tossed the fears... and embraced the faith that encouraged me to dare to dream. Over many a mountain and through a valley or two, I shed tears and read Words and prayed silence.

Are You entirely sure about this? Because You know me - You know how I love safety, security, steady. You know - and yet You're calling me to this, to this? You do know, don't You, the uncertainty of the writer's life? Are You sure?

I asked Are You sure? in the tone of Are You crazy?

And the amazing thing? He didn't mind.

So what if I hadn't trusted God? I might be a certified optician now, steady job (or maybe not), glancing over my shoulder at a dream abandoned, boxed in a closet.

But I'm not.

'Cause I did.

I do trust Him, I remind myself quietly, as transferring, transcripts, and tuition roll around in my boggled brain.

{The part of the passage not-so-easy to remember?}

"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Isaiah 55:9

Many Gifts

2011-09-27T13:35:00.001-04:00

#47: favorite hymns

#48: long chats with friends... and strawberries

#49: pink. October.

#50: walking across campus while really walking in story-land. Dreamers. {Must be why I'm kind of klutzy, no?}

Being Social

2011-09-24T07:00:00.000-04:00

"A classic is a book that has never finished saying what it has to say." - Italo Calvino

Once upon a time I read The End, thought to myself, I love that book! and flipped the pages to read the author bio. I'd hope that included would be a list of others books by this fabulous author I'd just found myself in love with. A hunt throughout bookstores and libraries for that same name on the spine would ensue before I was satisfied with having all (or nearly all) the titles by this amazing person on my bookshelf.

I went through that process with Lori Wick, with MaryLu Tyndall, and with Pamela Walls. Though disappointed that Pamela Wells never wrote anything after the South Seas Adventures, that series is so amazing (crisp writing and one-of-a-kind stories) that I still own all of them, thanks to many devoted searches which finally landed the last few in my eager hands.

I repeated this same scenario with a few other authors to a lesser extant. I checked out other books by Melody Carlson, but her Diary of A Teenage Girls (Caitlin) series remains the only one I've enjoyed. When it comes to Joan Bauer, nothing can come close to Hope Was Here.

That was once upon a time.

Of one story.

But, to be cliche, it's a different story now. And the title of the book is Being Social.

Now I read The End, devour the extra goodies at the back like the author's bio, and troop to my handy dandy laptop (insert Blues Clues theme song here) where I google the author. I visit his or her blog and cheer over new releases (which I immediately put into my Amazon shopping cart), check out their Facebook page and follow them on Twitter.

"I love a book that makes me cry." - Anne Shirley

Sometimes I find that they have an incredible blog and monthly-ish newsletter for teen writers, such as was the case with Stephanie Morrill. (Actually, I loved Go Teen Writers before I read and loved her books, which just made me adore GTW all the more.)

Sometimes I like all of their character's Facebook pages, as with Lisa T. Bergren's to-die-for River of Time series. {Seriously. Heroes and heroines posting status updates? All. Over. It.}

"Expansion, that is the idea that novelists must cling to, not completion, not rounding off, but opening out."

E.M. Forster

And sometimes, as happened with MaryLu Tyndall, there are hybrids that I loved before I became social. I delighted in her Legacy of the King's Pirates series, which is even better than the title of the series would make you believe, if that's possible. And I now delight in being-in-the-know about her up and coming releases via her Facebook page and newsletter.

So how do you learn about new books to fall in love with? I still adore the old-fashioned way, but I have a secret to finding great reads.

It is, of course, throwing off our introverted vulnerabilities and being social.

I'm Back

2011-09-22T12:36:00.001-04:00

You'd think I'd be used to it by now.

You'd think.

Semester starts, school-year begins, I start scheduling things left and right. Homework here, here, and here. Classes, quizzes, essays, and straight-A's (hopefully). Set the alarm earlier so I can wake up and be silent before the whirlwind.

Some days I bend my back to the wind, sway with the swirl, and laugh all the while.

Sometimes my feet stumble and I can't hear the music for my own crowded thoughts, squished in a seemingly strait-laced brain.

Dance, stumble, dance, dance...

...stumble.

Yet there in the background, the stream rushes steady. A constant flow of ideas, scenes, word-pictures, dialogue, and oh, I must write that down because surely that could be...anything. Or everything. Literary loves. An undulating river.

{~~Frustrating~~ Hilarious how half the time when my fingers do finally alight on the keyboard, that river slows to a trickle, but that is an entirely different post.}

So here I am, a month into the semester, already thinking about the classes I want to take next Spring...

And the dam breaks.

The rushing in my ears drowns out all coherent thought...and becomes coherent thought. (Much more coherent than that essay I'm writing, but no worries, because it's just in the first draft stage anyway.)

So all that is to say I'm back.

Back to blogging twice or thrice a week (isn't thrice just the cutest little word you ever did see? Like a written lisp). Back to pulling out the notebook paper and pencil and jotting down the droplets before that legacy of the stream should disappear forever. Back to acknowledging that yes, I'm a writer, and if I don't write, I ~~get cranky and the people I live with notice and that is not a good thing~~ I don't seem to live as fully, as widely, as I'd like to. As I ought to.

As I'm going to.

I'm back... To dancing in the whirlwind, laughing all the while. To breathing on paper. To writing.

Fall Blessings

2011-09-20T08:36:00.000-04:00

#37: Blogging again! Hooray!

#38: a young man's eyes fluttering closed in prayer

#39: clutching that Communion cup

#40: reading The End

#41: a sweet time with a friend

#42: this friend joining me in counting the gifts

#43: the gift of autumn

#44: singing along with the radio

#45: "O sweet hour of prayer"

#46: watching a squirrel play in a tree outside my window, knowing it won't be long now before those leaves are gone

Happy fall and many blessings, friends!