10 Years Ago . . .

On 9/11/2001, I remember . . . 

• Turning on the TV because my husband called.
• Watching in bewilderment, along with the TV commentators, as the 2^nd plane hit the 2^nd tower. 
• Praying, praying, praying.
• My neighbor and best friend bursting through my backdoor, asking if I knew.
• Weeping for the families of those whose loved ones came home to them--and the families of those who didn’t.  
• Trying to figure out how to explain what happened to my 10, 8, and 6 year old kids.
• Being grateful my husband wasn’t traveling that day. 
• Hugging my children hard when they came home from school.
• Wondering how it would change our world. 

Later in the week, I attended a prayer service at our church. I remember sitting in the pew, praying, singing “It Is Well With My Soul”, and, strangely enough, wondering if that feeling of agony and fear, of the uncertainty of the future, was the same as those who sat in pews and prayed after Pearl Harbor. In that moment, I felt a kinship with the past, with those who lived through other horrific events and survived. 

I thought about all that this weekend, with the rubble cleared away and new construction moving forward on the ground that absorbed such tragedy. Again, I prayed. Again I listened to stories of tragedy. But I also heard other stories, new stories of hope and redemption. Stories pieced together through years of wondering and searching or lived out in the midst of great pain. And in those I remembered again that this world has a Creator and a Savior. One that brings beauty from ashes. 

Oh, Lord, may we see Your hand in everything, bringing light into dark places, bringing life out of death, bringing hope in the midst of pain and suffering. Be near to our hearts, O God. Be near.




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I'm guest posting on Cara Putman's blog today--and she's doing a giveaway! You'll also find my book on a variety of blogs this week on my CFBA blog tour. See you around cyberspace!

A Sunday Psalm

The Lord watches over you--
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm--
He will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
    --Psalm 121:5-8

The 2nd Hottest Summer

To say it’s been a hot summer in Texas is like saying it’s a bit chilly in Siberia. It’s been HOT!  In fact, by the numbers it has been the second hottest summer on record. (I lived here through the first hottest as well, in 1980.) We’ve had 68 days where the high reached the 100 degree mark or above--40 of those coming on consecutive days. But another statistic I found about this summer really summed up the heat. In the past 115 years of keeping temperature records in our area, only once has our highest low temperature been 85 degrees. (Read that again. 85 degrees as the low for the day.) Once until 2011, that is. We hit that 85 degrees or higher as our low mark on nine  days this summer. The hot was hot and didn’t abate when the sun went down.

So where am I going with this? Of course I’m going to the God who shows us spiritual truth so often through the natural world.

On September 3, I woke up and made my usual trek to the coffee machine. I noticed my husband outside in a chair on the deck. I opened the door to ask him why he was out there, but my breath caught in my chest before I could utter a word.

He looked up at me. “75 degrees. Isn’t it wonderful?”

My coffee and I joined him outside. As if that weren’t enough, the following morning was so cool (68 degrees with a brisk wind) that I had to put on my lightweight sweatpants and wrap a blanket around my shoulders in order to sit outside with my coffee.

As I thought about this summer, it has reminded me again of how God often works in our lives. We walk through scorching hot trials, where the sweat rolls and the heat refuses to back off even in what ought to be the cool of night. Day after day after day with no respite. We begin to believe that life will forever be marked with hot. Cool— autumn— will never again appear. We will live from one 100 degree day to another, with no end in sight. We convince ourselves we simply have to learn to endure the heat, and we soldier on, determined yet wishing we could remember what it felt like to be cold.

Then one day, the door of our lives opens to a fresh breeze that whispers cool across our skin. In the blink of an eye, when we’d quit watching for the end, life changes. The fire of trial dies down, perhaps not retreating to nothingness, but at least no longer alive with blazing intensity. We lift our faces to heaven and understand once again that He hasn’t left us to wither in an unrelenting sun.

So that’s what I learned this summer. How about you?


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Today I’m over at my friend Jen AlLee’s blog. Come join in the conversation!

I've Missed Y'all!

So I guess you’ve noticed that I’ve kind of had an impromptu blog tour that has been taking up my blog space. At first, I was relieved to just post where I was each day and not have to write something new. Between getting my kids situated in college and high school and preparing for the official book launch, I was stressed and figured not blogging was one less thing on my to do list.

But during these past couple of weeks I discovered something. I missed blogging. I missed you, my blog readers! So in light of that, I want you to know that I’m returning to my regular posting schedule (Mon, Wed, Fri, and a Sun Psalm). At the bottom of each post, I’ll let you know if I’m being featured on another blog so you can visit and comment and keep me company in new places.


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Still time to comment for a chance to win Wings of a Dream at: Debbie Lynne Costello’s blog
                                                                                                       Janalyn Voigt’s Novel Books

Tea (or Coffee) and A Good Book

My friend Susie, at Tea and a Good Book, had me tell ten things about myself. Some of them might surprise you!

The Book is Launched!

Wow! What an amazing book signing and celebration! My friends and my family made it a day I will never forget. Here are a few pictures. Wish you could have been there, too!

Want a chance to win a copy of the book? Comment over at Novel Books.

Join me at Novel Books

While I'm still compiling the pictures from Saturday's book signing, please join me at Novel Books today with Janalyn Voigt.

A Sunday Psalm

Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven,
whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him
and in whose spirit is no deceit.
    --Psalm 32:1-2

Are You Ready for a Book Signing?

I'm not sure I am! But ready or not, here I come! If you are in the area, I'd love to see you. Here are the details:

Barnes and Noble

Firewheel Towne Center

Garland, TX

Saturday, Sept. 3, 2-4 pm

I'm super excited that we are doing this in conjunction with a book fair that will benefit the library at my kids' school. I look forward to connecting with you there!

Wings of a Dream Release Day!

Hey y'all! Today's the official release day! I stand in humble amazement of all God has done and continues to do through this imperfect woman. And I know that none of it is for me or about me. It's all about Him. His glory and His fame. Oh, that His name would be praised in all the earth! Selah.

I'm celebrating the release of Wings of a Dream with a two day interview over at the Barn Door Book Loft. Stop over and leave a comment for a chance to win the book!

I'm never home!

Home on my blog, I mean! Lena Nelson Dooley asked me all kind of interesting questions in the interview on her blog today. Come by and comment for a chance to win a copy of Wings of a Dream, too!

Humility

As I’ve started another journey through the Bible, from beginning to end, it seems the theme the Lord is showing me on this trip is humility. First I saw it anew in Moses’ life. (He is named as the most humble man on the face of the each.) Now I’m recognizing it in David’s life, though it is not actually named as such. 

In David’s life, I see humility in the lack of a presumption on his part. In spite of being anointed king by Samuel, David doesn’t take that word and say, “Ok, I’ve got this Lord. You told me what I’d be, now I’ll make sure it happens.” Instead, at every turn, he seeks the Lord’s direction--even when others are declaring that direction to be clear in the circumstances. (Most often those people were wrong!) 

David’s humility also comes in the form of forgiveness, of not holding a grudge, of maintaining integrity in his own words and actions no matter what his enemy did or said. That’s humility. Just like Moses, David didn’t feel a need to defend his position (or his future position). He left that to God to do or to not do. He was secure in his belief that God’s plan was superior to his own, in spite of what the circumstances looked like. 

Like Moses, David was also quick to repent when he realized his sin. And both men also understood that God’s reputation was more important than their own. And isn’t that humility, too? Realizing that my life isn’t about me. That my circumstances, whether marked by blessing or discomfort (or a bit of both), aren’t about me getting what I “deserve,” good or bad. The end result of all my life is simply to be a showcase for God’s glory, a revelation of His power, His love, and His forgiveness. 

Of course I’m only in 2 Samuel, but I have a feeling these lessons on humility will continue on through. After all, even in the New Testament God reminds us that He opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. (James 4:6, I Peter 5:5)

I want to walk the rest of my life in that kind of humility. How about you? 

Another Interview

I know. You think you know everything about me. :)

But amazingly enough, each person asks a few slightly different questions. Come to Debbie Lynne Costello's blog and see what she wanted to know.

A Sunday Psalm

I will open my mouth in parables,

I will utter hidden things, things from of old--

what we have heard and known,

what our fathers have told us.

We will not hide them from their children;

we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord;

His power, and the wonders He has done.

   --Psalm 78:2-4

Come Visit!

I'm over at Salena Stormo's blog today. Come by and visit!

The Doctor's Lady by Jody Hedlund

You might remember last year when I told you about a wonderful novel by debut Bethany House author Jody Hedlund called The Preacher’s Bride. Well, Jody’s second novel is now releasing (September 1 is the official date) and let me tell you, The Doctor’s Lady did not disappoint! 

Like Jody’s first book, this one is also based on the real lives of historical figures. This time we embark on a historic missionary journey across the then unclaimed and untamed western territories. Jody’s author notes at the end of the book will amaze you as to which incidents were drawn directly from the journal of the first white woman to make the trek. But the beauty of this book is more than its historical accuracy. Jody crafts characters that grapple with real issues as they seek to honor God with their lives. And in their struggles, I see my own heart more clearly. That’s what makes for a special book.  

An Interview

I know my blogging has fallen by the wayside this week. Forgive me! I'm getting back on track again now.  But today, come read an interview over on my friend Mary DeMuth's blog. We're even giving away a copy of Wings of a Dream!

Character Spotlight, Author Memories, and Story Behind the Story

Hey y'all! I'm in three places at once!

Come visit Relz Reviewz for a spotlight on Wings of a Dream protagonist Rebekah Hendricks.

Come visit Anita Mae's blog Author Memories to find out how I tracked down a very special piece of family history related to Wings of a Dream.


Drop by Nicole Miller's blog and discover some of the Story Behind the Story of Wings of a Dream. 

A Sunday Psalm

Search me, O God, and know my heart,
try me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there be any wicked way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
    --Psalm 139:23-24

My Journey to Publication (the short version)

I'm over at my fellow author Richard Mabry's blog today talking about my writing journey to publication. Stop by and comment!