Obey

If ye love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15).

Part of living a Christian, God-pleasing life is being obedient to Him, not out of fear, but in reverence and love for who He is. Scripture shows us that obeying the Lord is foundational, not optional. There are consequences for making poor choices and wrong decisions. The stories of biblical kings, prophets, and others give vivid illustrations of this.

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim (Judges 2:11).

Think of how many times the Israelites suffered for their disobedience in the Old Testament because they turned from God and sought to worship the pagan gods of those around them. These stories serve as powerful reminders of the consequences of sin. God is merciful, yes, but He is also just. Obedience invites blessings, while rebellion and sin bring correction.

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you (James 4:7).

We need to fully submit to God's commandments, His guidelines, and His will. This isn't always easy. Satan works hard to convince us otherwise, appealing to our desire for control and independence. He whispers deceptive thoughts to plant seeds of doubt and distraction. We often call these rationalizations -- subtle excuses that lead us from God. However, we can stand firm in our faith, resist the enemy's lies, and let our trust in the Lord send Satan fleeing. Let's choose that path.

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Heather, A New Novel on the Way

In anticipation of writing Heather, Hot Springs Bride in the National Park Brides series, my husband and I drove to Hot Springs, Arkansas, and toured the park. I'm so glad we did because it turned out to be different than I expected, and seeing it helped me to capture the true essence of the area. I don't think I could have done that without seeing the park for myself.

Unlike most other national parks, the main portion of the park is in the downtown portion of the city. It incorporates eight historic bathhouses along Bathhouse Row - two of which (Quapaw and Buckstaff) still operate as bathhouses for the experience. The Fordyce, which is the new one when Anson visits in my novel, is now a great museum.

The hot springs are bubbling out all over the place, but today, many of them are capped because people kept throwing trash in or misusing them. And just because the most visited part of the park is in the city doesn't mean there's not plenty of nature to see within the park. Hot Springs Mountain has a tower rising 216 feet above the summit and offering panoramic view from 1,256 feet above sea level. Gulpa Gorge Campground is operated by the park system and has camping, picnic areas, and an amphitheater. This is where the photo for my cover came from.

Good research is essential to writing a novel, especially a historical one like this, and there's nothing better than firsthand experience. Accuracy and authenticity help bring the story to life. Perhaps that's what makes this novel so special to me, and hopefully to readers as well. Heather, Hot Springs Bride will release on October 3 and is now available for preorder.

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 Worship the Lord

The Lord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him (Exodus 15:2).

"Worship isn't a warm-up before the Word. It's a weapon of warfare." When someone mentions praise and worship, most Christians might think of hymns and Christian music. These can be important, but worship is much more than that. It's a condition of the heart. You can listen to Christian music and not worship, and you can worship any time and any place, not just in church or with singing. 

O come, let us worship... (Psalm 95:6a).

Worship and praise come from a joyful, thankful heart. It flows from an understanding, at least in part, of who God is, and you're awed by Him and all that He's done for you. Worship is an opportunity to demonstrate that God owns your heart and to draw closer to Him. Satan hates true worship, and he will flee from it.

And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten (2 Chronicles 20:22).

"In the Old Testament, when God's people worshiped. walls fell, enemies fled, and victories were secured. Worship confuses the enemy and shifts the atmosphere.... In 2 Chronicles 20, when Judah was surrounded by enemies, King Jehoshaphat didn't send warriors first -- he sent worshipers. They didn't have to fight. God did it through their worship."

Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness (Psalm 29:2).

"You don't need perfect words -- just a surrendered heart. Worship in your home, in your car, in your spirit. Let praise rise, and the enemy scatter." Worship God with all that's within you!

(The quotes above are taken from: Violet James and Krystal Kuehn, The Full Armor of God).

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Building Something Beautiful

I am excited to introduce my newest book in my long list of those published. Building Something Beautiful came together smoothly (dare I say beautifully), and I enjoyed writing it. The title came from the fact that Isaiah Yates, the hero of the story, is a skilled carpenter. However, there is also a double meaning that becomes apparent toward the end.

As they often do, I think the children in the story steal the show, especially Leanne Moss's nine-year-old twin boys. Sammy is the mischievous one and Danny the more responsible; yet they are steadfastly loyal to each other. Many times, they had me smiling as I wrote.

The story has a theme that comes out loud and clear: honesty is always best. The way it plays out has an ironic twist similar to "The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry that I remember from high-school literature class, but the main characters learn their lesson, and this story has a happy ending. One reader has already told me how much she loved it and that she stayed up late to read, wanting to finish it.

It's available in print, Kindle, KU, and Audible. Be sure to check it out - https://www.amazon.com/Building-Something-Beautiful-Affection-Determination-ebook/dp/B0F2B84YD2.

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Attitude

. . . for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7b).

Christians need a Christlike attitude. The Bible implies over and over that we need to serve the Lord in the right spirit, not grudgingly or from a sense of duty, but from our hearts. Attitude is important. When I taught school, I tried to impart this to my students. I recalled a quote that I read from some motivational speaker. It said, "It's attitude, not aptitude that determines altitude."

I know a young man that illustrates this well. He loves baseball but wasn't necessarily built for the sport or gifted with remarkable talent. However, he worked harder than anyone, putting hours and hours into extra practice. And he had a great attitude, friendly, supportive, and encouraging with his teammates and easy to work with for his coaches. He has done well and gets lots of playing time. Currently, he's a catcher for a college team.

I like what Charles Swindoll writes about attitude: “The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.”

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23).

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 Appalachian Language

I find language and how it evolves fascinating. Part of that might be due to my Appalachian background. For years, Appalachia was an isolated pocket that maintained the language handed down from the Old Country longer than the rest of the country. Terminology resembling Elizabethan English was spoken there well into the twentieth century. In fact, I heard some of it as late as the 1980s.

Google says Americans are and were more likely to call the piece of dining room furniture a sideboard than a buffet, yet my parents called it by the older term, a buffet. When I took some college courses a few years ago, a literature class studied a Renaissance-era play that included the term "fly flap." None of the other students knew what it meant, but my mother often used the term, especially in the summer. It means a fly swatter.

Some other common words that are familiar to me, and perhaps to you, that directly came from Renaissance England and found in Appalachia today are afeared (afraid), britches (pants, trousers), poke (bag), sallet (wild greens prepared like collards), yonder (over there), reckon (think or suppose), hit (it), and right smart (a lot). There are many more. I've used these in writing the dialect for my novels set in the Appalachian Mountain. Refer to last week's blog, and check them out.

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The Greatest and the Least

Then there arose a reasoning among them, which of them should be greatest (Luke 9:46).

We find some of the disciples vying for top position, wanting to be first, on more than one occasion. It seems to be one of man's tendencies. We want to be first, become the most successful, and be the wealthiest. We like to win any competition, and some can be cutthroat in their efforts to achieve. 

And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire to be first, the same shall be last of all, and the servant of all (Mark 9:35).

But this is not Jesus' way. He taught that it's better to have a servant's heart. He goes on to teach that the first shall be last and the last shall be first. It reminds me of when I taught school, and the children would try to push through to get to the front of the line. When they got out of hand or the problem escalated, I would reverse the line, making the first one last.

Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18:4).

Jesus also reverses the line so the least on earth, those who have been kind-hearted servants, will be greatest in heaven. He honors the humble but criticizes the haughty, arrogant, and egotistical. Remember the proud Pharisee and the humble publican who went to pray in the temple in Luke 18:10-14. Jesus said the humble man went home justified, but the Pharisee did not.

Do you have a humble, servant's heart? It's what all Christians need. It's how we please our Lord.

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