Thoughtful Thursdays
Musings on faith, family, & fiction
Though a novelist by trade, one of the trademarks of my books is the spiritual depth and exploration I includes as my characters work through what it really means to walk out their faith. Faith, in fact, is one of the things I like to ponder most. In these once-a-week articles, I gets thoughtful at the crossroads of faith, family, and fiction.
Thoughtful About . . . His Kingdom
The other week while I was in Ocracoke, my morning devotional began with this passage from Acts 1:4-9 (NKJV): 4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you...
Good Friday – Dayenu
Today is the Thursday before Resurrection Day. The day before Good Friday. A day I'll be spending in part making unleavened bread and apple clay . . . we're not having an official seder this year, but eating these familiar, symbolic foods will help me get my head out...
Walking Worthy
“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called.”~ Ephesians 4:1 (NKJV) Walk worthy of the calling. This is a phrase that's been lingering in my heart and mind for the last year, ever since I really...
Imitation or Truth
Last week my husband was reading The Picture of Dorian Gray -- a book that neither of us had read before, though we assumed we knew what it was about. Turns out our preconceptions were a bit off, LOL. As he was reading, he would update me on what was going on in the...
When Fear Whispers
Fear. As Christians, we know we’re not supposed to live in it. We have all the awesome verses to trot out in proof. And I even hear it as the reason behind not wanting to be cautious–we don’t want to live in fear, after all. I admit it: I’ve said the same things...
Interruptions
Interruptions. We all know them. And we all hate them (unless of course we're being interrupted in a task we don't want to do, LOL). They are distractions. They are things that keep us from doing what we want to be doing, or what we should be doing. They are those...
Free But Costly
In the book world, there's a lot of talk about whether it's worthwhile to give things away for free. People are of multiple mindsets on this. Some think it's a great way to draw in new readers. Others think it devalues our work. What I know is this: when I get...
In Abba’s Arms
Over the weekend, I had a dream that my kids were little again. That Rowyn was maybe 18 months, and he was crying from another room. I heard him so went to find him, and he looked up at me as he did in reality a million times, saw me, stretched up his arms, and just...
What We Do Next
"Our faith isn't all the things we say we believe; it's what we do next."~ Bob Goff, Live in Grace, Walk in Love That. 😉 I feel like I could just leave you with that quote--shortest blog post ever, LOL. Because really, it says it so well, doesn't it? It...
Love the Sinner
Love the sinner, hate the sin. You've heard this saying. I know you have. I've been hearing it all my life, and in its truest sense, it's right. We are certainly called to hate sin. And we are certainly called the love everyone, neighbors and enemies alike. That...
Do We Look Like This?
Tomorrow is the inauguration here in the US. And the word tense doesn't begin to describe the state of America right now. I don't know your political stance or who you voted for. I don't need to know. But if you're reading my blog, chances are pretty good that you're...
Seeing the Story
I've always believed that stories change the world. This is no surprise--it is, in fact, one of the reasons I love writing novels, editing novels, publishing novels, and designing covers for novels. I believe in the power of fiction to touch hearts and tug on souls....
Word of the Year – Intentional
Looking for insight into how to choose an intentional Word of the Year?Check out that post here.As 2020 wound to a close, my best friend and I were talking about a Word for the year to come. I mentioned how I usually come to mine...namely, I pray about it and wait for...
The Third Way
A couple weeks ago at Bible study, we were talking about our reactions to things like aggression and violence done to us or our families. We saw, of course, the human response--"hurt my kids and I'll go all mama-bear on you." And then we dwelled a while on the...
Being Thankful…Especially Now
In the U.S., we have one week until Thanksgiving. I won't be posting on the day itself as I normally would on a Thursday, so I wanted to share some thoughts on it now. Something to help us all get our minds contemplating the purpose as we move into Thanksgiving week....
The Day That Changed Everything…and Nothing
If we lived a hundred years ago, my son would be dead. That's something that has haunted me this last month. I can't tell you how many times, as I write historical fiction, that I wish I lived in a different time, or could at least experience it. But I can't wish that...
Hope and the Image of God
I've recently begun listening to a really great (specialized) podcast called "Juicebox," from a dad of a Type 1 Diabetic. Many years ago he started a blog called "Arden's Day," back in the day when there weren't any others, and he is now one of the best-known voices...
Who Are Our Allies?
It's election season here in the US when I'm writing this post. If you've followed me for very long, you'll have noticed that I never voice an opinion on politics per se. I have zero political agenda and, frankly, next to zero interest in politics, LOL. But I do have...
The Sins of a Nation
I’m honored to be part of a new blog series about racial reconciliation, hosted by Alexis Goring, focused on how we as Christians can be the change we want to see in our world. In preparation for this, I’ve been reading a few books to help me better understand the...
Big, God-Inspired Dreams
I'm a dreamer. I've always been one. I've dreamed of everything from being a princess with a magical winged unicorn to being a teacher who inspires kids to love learning. I've dreamed of discovering new species of dinosaurs and of striking it rich with a diamond mine...
38 Things
It's my birthday, so I thought it would be fun to do a list today. You know, one of those lists that has the same number of items as the year I'm turning. Of course, I first typed in "37" in that heading, because apparently I don't know how old I am, LOL. Literally...
Thoughts Without Action
Ideas are easy. Change is hard. My husband and I were talking about this the other day, as I contemplated why we balance each other out so well. I said—and I’d been giving it some thought—that one of the things I most appreciate about our relationship is that he holds...
An Angry Dilemma
What makes you angry? Maybe you’re frustrated with the state of the world right now. Maybe someone you love has been ill-treated. Maybe politics makes you red in the face. Maybe your spouse ignores your feelings or your kids don’t listen or your neighbor keeps doing...
Unity Begins with Us
"How good and pleasant it is when God's people live together in unity!" ~ Psalm 133:1 (NIV) I can't tell you how many times I've heard people say they wish for unity among God's people. But as my husband pointed out, what they usually mean is "I wish everyone...
The Story of Truth
One of the reasons I've always loved fiction is that it can take mere facts and make them mean something to us. More, they can take a familiar story and show us a side of it we've never considered. Stories can take the truth and shine the Truth upon it. They can help...
Thoughtful about . . . Watching, Speaking, Listening
—Ezekiel 33 begins with the talk of a watchman: Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and...
Helping or Serving?
In the church today, we hear a lot about helping others. Volunteering. Making sandwiches, serving at a soup kitchen, that sort of thing. “Help those less fortunate than you” is a phrase I’ve heard for years. And the work—the work is good! Necessary. But something...
Our Time Is Not Our Own
7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I...
Digging Out Roots
Then He said to the disciples, “It is impossible that no offenses should come, but woe to him through whom they do come! 2 It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these...
Thoughtful About . . . Understanding Riots
I'll admit it--I've never understood riots. Whether they're a result of a sporting event or a grave injustice, the act itself is just something that is foreign to my disposition. I have been largely baffled by the examples in my lifetime, and I honestly didn't know...
Thoughtful About . . . Encouragers
At the time of writing this (the weekend before it posts), I'm sitting with my laptop at the kitchen table while my husband's comfy in our leather armchair, reading The Nature of a Lady before I have to turn it in on June 1. I'm...
Thoughtful About…The Compassion Conundrum
In last weekend's sermon, my dad preached from Luke 14, and as he went through the Scriptures, something interesting jumped out at me.First is something that has struck me many times before, in many different passages. Jesus, often about some other task, comes across...
Thoughtful About . . . Preparing Our Hearts to Knock on the Door
Let me share a few stories with you. You've probably heard them before. They're stories about some of the Great Men of Faith in our recent history. First, one of my favorites about George Muller. One morning at his orphanage, he was informed by a panicked house mother...
Thoughtful About . . . the Purpose of Praise
Last week, my husband asked one of those questions of his that really get me thinking--the sort that sounds straightforward but isn't. He said, "What's the purpose of praise?" Now, I already knew that things like the psalms and even our modern praise and worship songs...
Thoughtful About . . . Holy, Holy, Holy ~ Even Now
It's Holy Week. My favorite week of the year. Most of my friends and family are Christmas diehards, but us? My husband and I have always preferred Resurrection Day and the week leading up to it. The week when the focus isn't on gifts but on sacrifice. This year,...
Thoughtful About . . . Our Daily Cross
Holy Week will soon be upon us ~ my favorite week of the year. Better, in my opinion, than Christmas, where it's so easy to focus on the physical traditions instead of the miracle. Because this week is all about the miracle. The miracle that rewrote history, restored...
Thoughtful About . . . The Invisible
I'll never forget the first time I watched Monsters, Inc. with the kids. We'd rented it so were watching it at home. Both of them were pretty small. They laughed in all the right places--and the grabbed hold of my arms and scrambled into my lap at the expected ones...
Thoughtful About . . . Not Fear, but Love
Are you ready? I have a load of goodies for you today! My next (Virtual) Tea Party is live for orders. There is a SALE on The Lost Heiress. And...our podcasts are LIVE!!! With everything that is going on in the world today, I wanted to be able to share as much...
Thoughtful About . . . Spiritual Fullness
We've recently decided to read some of the writings of the early church fathers--things that aren't included in our Bible because they weren't written by an apostle, but which are still very early. We began with I Clement, written somewhere around 90 AD, from the...
Thoughtful About . . . Fruit
We love fruit in our family. Fresh fruit, canned fruit, dried fruit, jammed fruit, fruit from our own garden, or fruit from the other side of the world. We love citrus fruit, stone fruit, berries... Fruit can be a taste of the familiar or the tang of the exotic. We...
Thoughtful About . . . Our Faults
I've been thinking a lot about character lately. The kinds I write, yes...but also our characters. And how, really, the two are pretty much the same, hence the shared name. 😉 Learn More I remember back in the day when I was a 12/13-yr-old, writing the first draft of...
Thoughtful About . . . Busy Weeks
It's birthday party week in my house--not only my son's 12th, but my mom's 60th, so I'm going to be up to my elbows is cakes and cupcakes and icing and cleaning and . . . you get the idea. =) So I'm taking the easy way for blogging this week and just sharing some fun...
Thoughtful About . . . The Power of Words
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men....
Thoughtful About . . . Blizzard Faith
'Tis the season for snow here in America (or at least the more northern parts of it), and so I thought it would be a great time to share a devotional that one of my characters wrote. 😉 These are the words of LuAnn Sherrill from the Secrets of Wayfarers Inn #20,...
A Year of Promise
PROMISE. That was my word for 2019. As I blogged about it way back in the first week of January, I said I'd keep an eye out for how God's promise would play out in my life this year. Confession: I really didn't. In fact, I didn't even remember that it was my word of...
The Light Has Come
Last weekend, my dad's Christmas sermon began not with the familiar passage from Luke, but with John. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and...
Thoughtful About . . . Written on Our Lives
A couple weeks ago, my church watched Mom's Night Out--a rather hilarious Christian movie that we all thoroughly enjoyed. In one scene, the heroine's little girl is drawing on the walls with markers--Mommy ends up putting frames around some of them rather than...
Thoughtful About . . . Broken Vessels
Sometimes we are broken. Cracked. Chipped. Completely undone. Sometimes, no matter how much is poured into us, it feels like it all comes leaking back out. Sometimes life just keeps throwing rocks at us, making those chips and cracks grow. Maybe there's been a...
Thoughftul About . . . New but Eternal
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23 (ESV) One of the most amazing things about our...
Thoughtful About . . . Elevators
How do we approach conversation? Is it just a means of exchanging information? Letting our opinions be made known? Are we trying to help others? Broaden our understanding? Do we go at it with no purpose--or with a self-serving one? If you're anything like me, the...