God's love becomes personal to my soul.
Hey, friends. Thank you for stopping by. My writing journey has been a long one, and I'm thankful I stayed on the path where God has taken me. If you are a reader, thank you so much. As an author, I appreciate you more than I can say. If you're a writer and you've been penning words a long time or just a little while, trust God with your journey. He knows what's ahead.
Wednesday, May 10, 2023
God's Love is Personal
God's love becomes personal to my soul.
Monday, September 5, 2022
Christmas Book Review: A Quilt for Christmas: A Christmas Novella by Melody Carlson
What It’s About:
Christmas should be celebrated with family. But for Vera
Swanson, that's not an option this year. Widowed and recently relocated, she is
lonely in her condo-for-one--until little Fiona Albright knocks on her door
needing help. With her mother seriously ill and her father out of town, Fiona
enlists Vera's help, and when she finds out her new neighbor is a quilter, she
has a special request--a Christmas quilt for Mama.
Vera will have to get a ragtag group of women together in order to fulfill the
request. Between free-spirited artist Tasha, chatty empty nester Beverly,
retired therapist Eleanor, and herself, Vera has hopes that Christmas for the
Albright family will be merry, after all--and she may find herself a new family
of friends along the way.
Bestselling and award-winning author Melody Carlson invites you to cuddle up
this holiday season with this cozy story of giving, forgiving, and a little bit
of romance.
My Thoughts:
I look forward to Carlson’s Christmas novella every year. This one is a lovely
story centering around a woman whose traditional Christmas’s have been derailed,
then she meets a sweet child who changes everything. Four-year-old Fiona
spreads Christmas joy just by being her sweet, precocious self. As the quilt
comes together, so do the lives of the most unexpected quilters. This story is about
healing and transformation and Carlson does a beautiful job telling this wonderful
story. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this
review are completely my own.
Tuesday, May 10, 2022
Fiction Review: When the Meadow Blooms by Ann H. Gabhart
Book Description:
If any place on God's earth was designed to help one heal, it is Meadowland.
Surely here, at her brother-in-law's Kentucky farm, Rose and her daughters can
recover from the events of the recent past--the loss of her husband during the
1918 influenza epidemic, her struggle with tuberculosis that required a stay at
a sanatorium, and her girls' experience in an orphanage during her illness. At
Meadowland, hope blooms as their past troubles become rich soil in which their
faith can grow.
Dirk Meadows may have opened his home to his late brother's widow and her
girls, but he keeps his heart tightly closed. The roots of his pain run deep,
and the evidence of it is written across his face. Badly scarred by a fire and
abandoned by the woman he loved, Dirk fiercely guards his heart from being hurt
again. But it may be that his visitors will bring light back into his world and
unlock the secret to true healing.
My Thoughts:
I so connected with Rose's daughter Sienna. What a delightful child! I loved
how she saw the wonder in everything. Calla, too. She was so conscientious
and caring. As I read along and found out more about Meadowland, I wanted to
live there. Gabhart took the heartbreak and suffering of Rose and Dirk and created
a beautiful story of healing and hope, spun with a bit of mystery. If you enjoy
a good story driven by strong characters with an amazing setting and a
satisfying ending, you'll want to read Where the Meadow Blooms. I received a
complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are
completely my own.
Wednesday, April 20, 2022
A Quiet Moment
Saturday, January 29, 2022
Embrace Courage
Acts 4:13
When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were
unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that
these men had been with Jesus.
I zipped across the water.
Not a fan of heights, I stood on the wooden tower, harness fastened, and looked across the lake to my daughter. She waited for me to step off the platform and fly across the expanse on a cable. And I did. I raised my arms and screamed as I flew to the destination. Stepping off the secure place where I stood took courage. I had no experience with ziplining, but I wanted to give it a try. The camp counselor gave me the equipment I needed to accomplish the task.
I'd worked years on my manuscript, here and there when time
allowed. After editing and tweaking. I finally typed the end. God gave me the
opportunity to send the full manuscript to a publisher. My stomach quivered,
and my hand shook a little as I pressed send. Sending my book baby out into the
world took courage. God gave me the tools and resources to accomplish the task.
After Jesus death and resurrection, His disciples, Peter and
John, were given the power to heal. They moved through the community and placed
their hands on the sick and weary and restored them. Those who witnessed their
deeds spoke of their courage as ordinary men who loved Jesus. Just weeks before,
Jesus had died a horrible death and there were people who hated Jesus and
wanted to see his ministry end. Those same adversaries kept an eye on Peter and
John as they bravely continued teaching about and living for Jesus. God gave
them the gift of healing to accomplish the task.
Even in America, land of the free and home of the brave,
it's not always easy to speak freely about Jesus and his grace. God calls each
of us to serve Him, and He equips us in whatever task He sets before us.
Whatever God puts on your heart, embrace courage, use the
resources and gifts He gives, and go forward.
Monday, January 17, 2022
Historical Fiction Review: The Finder of Forgotten Things by Sarah Loudin Thomas
Book Description:
It's one thing to say you can find what people need--it's another to actually
do it.
It's 1932 and Sullivan Harris is on the run. An occasionally successful dowser, he promised the people of Kline, West Virginia, that he would find them water. But when wells turned up dry, he disappeared with their cash just a step or two ahead of Jeremiah Weber, who was elected to run him down.
Postmistress Gainey Floyd is suspicious of Sulley's abilities when he appears in her town but reconsiders after new wells fill with sweet water. Rather, it's Sulley who grows uneasy when his success makes folks wonder if he can find more than water--like forgotten items or missing people. He lights out to escape such expectations and runs smack into something worse.
Hundreds of men have found jobs digging the Hawks Nest Tunnel--but what they thought was a blessing is killing them. And no one seems to care. Here, Sulley finds something new--a desire to help. With it, he becomes an unexpected catalyst, bringing Jeremiah and Gainey together to find what even he has forgotten: hope.
My Thoughts:
I'd heard about The Finder of Lost Things for months and was
excited to win a copy in an online giveaway. The story twines with the Hawk's Nest
Tunnel in 1930s West Virginia, where the worst industrial disaster in US
history occurred. Many workers lost their lives to silicosis from the particles
in the tunnel. Although this story is shadowed by sadness, Thomas takes the
historical elements and infuses determination, hope, and friendship to create a
beautiful story of determination, change, and love. Postmistress Gainey Floyd
is an incredibly strong woman who has learned to live alone, content and determined
to help others. Jeremiah Weber has been a bachelor for so long, he's not sure
he wants to change. And Sullivan Harris, well he's a bit of a trickster who
hides his true heart and desires, even as he grows to care about the people put
in his path. I love the way Thomas weaves in the tragedy of Hawk's Nest and honors
the lives of those lost. She even memorializes many of them by name. I've
enjoyed every book I've read by Sarah Loudin Thomas. She's a wonderful writer
who touches on the soul of the character and the reader. Opinions written here
are my own. I received this book from a contest with no expectation for a
review.
Wednesday, September 22, 2021
Broken
Wednesday, July 14, 2021
Bee Kind
Thursday, June 3, 2021
Time-Travel Fiction Review: Come Back to Me (Waters of Time Book #1) by Jody Hedlund
Book Description:
The ultimate cure that could heal any disease? Crazy.
That's exactly what research scientist Marian Creighton has always believed
about her father's quest, even if it does stem from a desire to save her sister
Ellen from the genetic disease that stole their mother from them. But when her
father falls into a coma after drinking a vial of holy water believed to
contain traces of residue from the Tree of Life, Marian must question all of
her assumptions. He's left behind tantalizing clues that suggest he's crossed
back in time. Insane. Until Marian tests his theories and finds herself in the
Middle Ages during a dangerous peasant uprising.
William Durham, a valiant knight comes to Marian's rescue and offers her
protection . . . as his wife. The longer Marian stays in the past, the more she
cares about William. Can she ever find her father and make it back to the
present to heal her sister? And when the time comes to leave, will she want to?
Bestselling author Jody Hedlund is your guide down the twisting waters of time
to a volatile era of superstition, revolts, and chivalry in this suspenseful
story.
My Thoughts:
Wow! I’ve never read a book like Come Back to Me. I’ve read time travel,
but not with the intricate details and constant danger Jody Hedlund writes. One
thing I love about this story is the imagination Hedlund uses to set up the
story, but also the hope threaded throughout the book that life can be better,
miracles still happen, and love remains as a healing balm. Marian moves between
two worlds, very different times, yet she carries with her a faith and
conviction to help her father and heal her sister. William Durham is the
ultimate medieval knight, he’s brave, caring, and would do anything to keep his
people safe. If you enjoy time travel stories with twists, you’ll love this
story. I listened to Jody Hedlund in an interview. The research she’s done gives
the story depth and believability. I received a complimentary copy of this
book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Saturday, January 2, 2021
Gratitude Opens the Heart to Joy
Luke 17:15-19
One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud
voice. He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a
Samaritan.
Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? Has
no one returned to give praise to God except this foreigner?” Then he said
to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.”
The beautiful thing about gratitude—it leads to joy.
As a writer,
I embrace words. I have favorites and some I'd rather not hear or read. In the
novel I'm writing, I search for the perfect words to express the characters actions
and emotions. When I edit, I remove unnecessary words and rewrite the scene.
As many writers do, I've asked God to give me a word for the year.
In 2020, God
gifted me with "Be Brave." He basically told me not to fear. In 2020,
fear tossed me on my head at times. Yet, I clung to Him and the words he gave
me. When anxiety reared its ugly head (which happened more often than I care to
share) I called on the Lord for courage.
Now we are
waltzing into 2021, praying for a better year. As I asked God for my word, the
one I'd focus on for 365 days, He whispered "Gratitude." The Oxford
Dictionary defines gratitude as "the quality of being thankful; readiness
to show appreciation for and to return kindness." I love that
returning kindness is part of gratitude.
In Luke 17, Jesus healed ten lepers. He sent them to see the priest and as soon as they stepped away from Jesus, the leprosy left them. As it turns out, only one returned to thank him. And he was a Samaritan, a group of people regarded as lowly and unworthy. That man's heart overflowed with appreciation toward the one who healed him. He could finally live without ridicule and shunning. The Samaritan, low man in society, poured a grateful kindness over the one who gave him his life back. He showed gratitude to Jesus with joy in his heart.
When I imagine
being sick for years and despised by most people, and through love and
compassion Jesus released me and restored my life; I wonder, would I be like
the nine ungrateful men or the one who poured joy over Jesus.
As the New Year rings in, embrace gratitude, show appreciation and return kindness.
Wednesday, June 10, 2020
Help Comes From the Lord
Saturday, September 28, 2019
She Gives Me Hope

Have faith in the One who saves.
Thursday, August 30, 2018
When Heaven Means Healing
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Even when grief weighs me down and I struggle with reality, God guards my heart and holds my hand.
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Tattered and Mended: The Art of Healing the Wounded Soul by Cynthia Ruchti (Abingdon, July 2015)
A crumbling statue. A torn tapestry. A discolored painting.
Artisans can reclaim exquisite beauty from the broken, frayed, and hopefully shattered---perhaps once thought beyond repair. But what about us? What of the wounds that keep us from living the life we want to live?
In Tattered and Mended, readers walk through a gallery of reclaimed and restored art as well as broken and restored lives of those who have gone before us. With a gentle touch and personable wisdom, Cynthia Ruchti shows how even the most threadbare soul can once again find healing and hope.

As an artist, sewer, and crafter, I've repaired many clothing items, afghans, quilts, and even socks. My daughter's dog chewed a hole in the quilt I designed just for her. With a bit of sadness, I pulled scraps of the fabric from my box and stitched over the huge tear. I couldn't restore it to the crisp, freshness it once had, but I could mend it and make it beautiful and useful again.
