Body, Soul, and Spirit

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him: male and female created he them (Genesis 1:27).

God created us in His own image, and just as there're three parts that make up the Godhead (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit), there are three parts to us (the body, soul, and spirit). The body is the tangible part of us -- the physical part that can see, hear, smell, speak, taste, touch, and move. It is our vessel, and it operates only in the world. 

The soul is the essence of who we are. Through it, we influence the world around us for good or for bad. Our personality and character are centered in our souls. It can operate on two levels: with the body in the temporal world or with the spirit in the eternal. After we come to know Christ, the Holy Spirit works to mold and refine this part of us.

The spirit is the part that can reach upward toward heavenly places and have a deep relationship with God, or it can reach down to the depths of darkness. By our spirit, we touch realms beyond us. When we come to Christ, the Holy Spirit indwells with this part of us.

And it is our choice how we cultivate and use our three components. We can grow our faith and become who God wants us to be, or we can be self-centered, materialistic, and uncaring. Even Christians can get caught up in worldly perspectives and values if they're not careful. The daily choices we make will lead us in one direction or another. Let's make choices that will give our body, soul, and spirit to God.

And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (1Thessalonians 5:23).

______________________________________________

Douglas Birk

Sterling Orphans Audible

Sterling Orphans, the second book in the Cactus Creek series, has just been released for Audible. Again, Douglas Birk and Jennifer Groberg have teamed together to produce the book. I think they get better all the time, which makes sense since they are able to know the characters and the storyline more thoroughly with each book.

In Sterling Orphans, most of the characters listeners came to love in Second-Choice Bride reappear, but the book features four characters: Will Hudson, Rose Sterling, Gray Fox, and Letty Sterling Sawyer. Needing to leave Sterling Orphan House at eighteen, Rose Sterling is to take toddler, Katie Hudson, to her father who works on the King Ranch in New Mexico Territory. She thought her biggest adventure would be getting there on the wagon train, but she was wrong. In the meantime, Will Hudson can’t believe he has a daughter. His wife left him for a gambler, and he’s been trying to cope ever since. He doesn’t make the best impression on Rose at first, but he sees how much his little daughter loves and depends on her. Can he adjust to fatherhood, or will he always be a disappointment to the women in his life? Then, Letty Sawyer is terrified of Indians since they killed her adoptive parents. When she ends up on the King Ranch, can Gray Fox show her that all Indians aren’t alike, and he would protect her with his life?

The dual narration is working well for this series, and I appreciate Doug and Jen's hard work. In fact, they're already busy producing the next book in the series, Poor Relation. The print and ebook should be out by the first week in May, and the audible will follow soon after ACX approves it, which unfortunately is now often taking 6 - 8 weeks or more after we submit it. 

_______________________________

 

 Shine the Light

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).

I hear many Christians complaining about the conditions in America and the state of the world today. When we listen to the news, darkness does seem to be gaining ground. But how many Christians are doing something about it? Jesus tells us what to do in Matthew 5:16. We are to let Christ's light shine in us and through us to be a beacon for good.

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8:12).

Jesus is truly the answer to all this nation's and all the world's problems. Christians know that, but are they sharing it? I think if we shared the Good News as often as we talked about the problems and what's wrong, we could turn this world around. What's holding us back? We don't have to do anything but be willing and surrender in obedience. The Holy Spirit within us will take over from there.

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house (Matthew 5:14-15).

Your candle was lit when you gave your life to Christ. He shines in you and through you. Have you put it on display so that all can see the light of Jesus Christ and be brought into His presence and saved, or have you hid your candle under a basket because you don't want to be a witness. For whatever reason, you choose not to share Christ. Someday we will all answer to how well we've shared the light of Christ. Remember the song, "This Little Light of Mine?" Go forth and let it shine.

__________________________________

Due to travel plans, no blog

will be posted

Thursday or Monday.

Please feel free to search previous blogs.

I suggest the one 

on the Legend of the Dogwood

for the season of the year.

https://janicecolehopkins.blogspot.com/search?q=the+legend+of+the+dogwood

 Opposing Reviews

Readers should think before they give a book a bad review. The goal is to be as truthful as possible and give information that will help others decide if they want to read it. If the story doesn't appeal to you for a very personal reason, take that into consideration. Be as honest as you can from an unbiased perspective and be as reasonable and constructive as possible with all your criticism.

Oddly enough, I've had reviews that fall on both sides of an issue. Take When Winter Is Past, for example. One reviewer complained that the language in it wasn't historical enough: "I enjoyed the story however I found myself frustrated at times. The manner of speaking and expressions were not appropriate for the time period."

First, the reviewer was mistaken. In all my historical novels, I look up any questionable words to make sure they were used during that time period, and I sprinkle it with a few outdated words that are rarely used today but were in that era. However, if I were to write in the exact language patterns used in 1739, the modern reader would not read it. And for those set in an even much earlier time period, like the medieval period, they could not read it.

At the same time, I had other reviewers praising When Winter is Past for its authenticity. "This is an incredible book! Set during the colonial time before the Revolution, it took a bit to remember my education on the customs of the day. There's indentured servants and powdered wigs, use of the word Mistress to mean Mrs. and how one went about finding a wife, to name a few. but what a powerful story!!" Another writes, "Very well written, this book kept my interest the whole way through because the characters are very believable. Since this is set in a time most modern readers know little about, it seems very well researched and uses authentic sounding dialogue. If you like historical fiction, this is for you!"

I guess this just goes to prove the old sayings that you can't please everyone are true. I have a degree in history, specializing in American and British history and have taught history and English for years. I still take courses to stay up on the subject. On top of that, I am meticulous with the needed research and enjoy doing it. I understand that I must balance the archaic language patterns with the smooth flow of the story. All in all, I'm pleased with my historical novels, like When Winter is Past, and thankfully, most readers appear to be, too.

______________________________

Contemplation

For my morning devotion, I always include at least three things: Bible reading and study, a Christian nonfiction book or commentary, and prayer. I have just begun reading 5 Things Christians Must Do by F. B. Meyer. I want to include a portion here. I think the thought-provoking, inspiring words speak for themselves.

In the soul of every man, in which the Holy Spirit has commenced His work, there are depths of yearning desire which cannot be satisfied from a merely intellectual standpoint. As in David's experience so in ours, both heart and flesh cry out for the living God.

The present decline in church attendance may be largely due to the failure of the pulpit to meet the demand of the human spirit for a more adequate presentation of the spiritual and eternal aspects of our Christian faith, and for a more powerful dynamic and a clearer analysis of the steps that lead through darkness unto God. 

...we may marvel, first at the extraordinary opportunity presented to us of becoming the sons and daughters of the Eternal God, and second, that any should treat such an opportunity with neglect. But that we, the children of a fallen race, should have the opportunity of becoming, in the most intimate sense, the sons and daughters of the Lord God Almighty, invited to share in His glory - when we quietly consider it - becomes too great for words!

______________________________

Number of Pages vs Time to Read

I'm beginning to realize the number of pages isn't always the main factor in determining how much time it will take me to read a book. I do refuse to buy books over 450 pages unless they are collections because I've found them to be stuffed with too many extraneous sections that do nothing to move the story, and I find them too boring. Yet, I do examine them to see if this holds true, and so far, it has.

However, I can read a 350-page book that's a page-turner much faster than a 175-page book that moves slowly. So, it's not really the number of pages that determines how quickly I read but the quality of the writing. And this is true for how much I enjoy a book, too.

On the other end of the spectrum, I rarely enjoy short stories. At one time, I wouldn't buy a book less than 100 pages, but I've changed that. I found if they're well-written I enjoy even shorter novellas. I recently read one that said it was only 24 pages, but it was so well-developed that I thoroughly enjoyed it. (I still think it may actually be more pages because Amazon has also misnumbered some of mine in Kindle.) But it's not the number of pages that determine how long it will take me to read it or how much I enjoy it.

________________________________

 Why the Cross Was Necessary

God has an aversion to sin and will have absolutely nothing to do with it because He is Holy; it is His very nature. Since sin is diametrically opposed to holiness, God cannot be in the presence of sin. (He does still love the sinner, however, but they cannot have a relationship before salvation.) From the fall of Adam and Eve, we've all inherited a sinful nature, and we'd never be able to live in presence of God as we are. 

Death is the penalty for sin. In the Old Testament, the people tried to keep God's law, and, when they failed, they offered an animal sacrifice to pay their sin debt. But this was a temporary fix, and it became cumbersome as the population and humanity's sins grew. Therefore, God sent the ultimate sacrifice, His perfect, sinless Son, to die in our place. Jesus’ sacrifice allows us to trade our sins for his righteousness, so we can be in the presence of Holy God. He took our sins upon Himself, and this became the most agonizing time of the whole crucifixion ordeal when God turned from Him for the first time ever due to our sins. 

Jesus had to die in our place to atone for our sins, and we have to accept Him as our Savior for us to live in eternity.  Only the death of God’s Son on the cross was pure and good enough to pay the price for our sins for all time. Jesus kept every one of God’s laws for us and then died for our sins, so we can now live under His grace and not under the law. Now, when we approach the throne of God, He doesn't see any of our sins because Christ's blood washed them all away. He sees only righteousness, because of the trade we made when we accepted Christ into our lives.

Jesus’ death was like no other. His sacrifice on the cross lies at the heart of the gospel. How we answer that question of who Jesus is will be the single most important decision we ever make in our lives. Putting your faith in Jesus as God’s Son means forgiveness, love, and eternal life. We need to recognize that nothing else comes close to being as important in our lives as how much we surrender our hearts to Him. 

____________________________________