Sneak peek...

A sneak peek...

of my upcoming August 2014 release with Zondervan!!!

Fiction draws us near...

There's been a longstanding debate in the church on whether or not fiction is worth reading. Some hold fast to the viewpoint that fiction is a waste of time, that one should only read their Bible and nonfiction works that draw us nearer to a knowledge of God.

Well I'm here to tell you that since I was about 11 years old, God has used FICTION to draw me nearer to His heart. :)  And it's because of authors who have hearts for Him and desire to use their lives and talent to bring Him glory through relatable characters, entertaining plots, and an inspiring message of hope and grace.

Check out this work of quality fiction by my friend LIZ JOHNSON...

SEAL Under Siege (September 3, 2013)

by Liz Johnson

Summary: SHE'S NOT SAFE YET 

When Staci Hayes is rescued from a Mideast prison by navy SEAL Tristan Sawyer, she thinks the ordeal is over. But back in San Diego, a new threat arises. Staci has information that could prevent a hit on U.S. soil, and the terrorist will stop at nothing to silence her. Tristan insists on being her bodyguard, but his constant presence makes her long for things beyond her reach. Protecting Staci is the second chance Tristan needs to put the past behind him. Yet with a spy on the naval base, anyone could be a threat. Can he offer her safety…and love? 

About the Author:

By day Liz Johnson is a marketing manager for a Christian publisher. She finds time to write late at night and is a two-time ACFW Carol Award finalist. Liz makes her home in Nashville, TN, where she enjoys theater, exploring local music, and making frequent trips to Arizona to dote on her nieces and nephews. She loves stories of true love with happy endings and blogs about her adventures in writing at www.LizJohnsonBooks.com. Follow her online at Facebook.com/LizJohnsonBooks or Twitter.com/LizJohnsonBooks.

Links to retailers carrying the book:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

ChristianBook.com

The Book Depository

Excerpt:

            “You said I was safe. You said you’d protect me.”

            “I did. You made it safely home, didn’t you?” His words were short but not unkind.

            “I made it home, anyway.”

            Those blue eyes sliced into hers.

            “What does that mean?”

            “Someone has been following me, and I think it’s the same man from Lybania.”

            His arms crossed over his broad chest, the sleeves of his t-shirt pulling snug around his biceps. He looked so intimidating.

            “Did you call the police? Tell them you’re being stalked, and they can look into it for you. They can handle things like that.”

            “They wouldn’t help me.” If she had any idea how to face down the man following her on her own, she would. But since she didn’t, she had to convince the lieutenant to help.

            Taking a first step toward him, she pointed her finger at his chest. “Listen to me. I’m in trouble, but it’s not just me. I don’t know the name of the man who’s after me, but I know what I heard. He’s plotting to blow something up . . . here in San Diego.”

The Good Life

I blogged today at Girls God and the Good Life! Come visit me :)

www.girlsgodgoodlife.blogspot.com

Do you feel forgotten?

http://www.familylife.com/articles/topics/faith/essentials/growing-in-your-faith/god-has-not-forgotten-you-a-31-day-devotional#.UkDy79I3tqx

If you're needing to be reminded that God has not forgotten you, the above link is a FABULOUS resource. I cried my way through it recently. I hope it encourages you too!! :)

I really am coming back...!!!

I have so much to share with you!

Give me a few more days to get my post-conference bearings :)

Back next week...

I'll be out for a few days attending the 2013 ACFW Conference (www.acfw.com) so I will be MIA on the blog for a bit. Prayers appreciated while I travel, and I expect to have some God-sized stories to tell when I get back! :)

The Waiting Rooms of Life

http://www.ibelieve.com/faith/the-waiting-rooms-of-life.html?fb_action_ids=10151585108581701&fb_action_types=og.likes&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=288381481237582

This article of mine was just featured on www.ibelieve.com

I'd be honored to receive your thoughts on it!

An Ode to U-Turns

I recently switched from an older model Blackberry to a Galaxy S4 Active cell phone. I was so excited that my new phone had an AT&T Navigator/GPS on it, because when I say I can get lost in a straight line, I'm saying that's the understatement of the year. 

I'm not talking about out of town. I'm talking about MY hometown. Where I've lived and still live, for the past 29 years. I'm talking about still not having the best concept of how to get from this person's house to this restaurant in the most time efficient way. I can GET there but it might take me 15 minutes longer than anyone else in my party, because they knew the cut-throughs and I had to go highway or main boulevard. 

I can even have fantastic, detailed directions that are way over and beyond for the average person. And I can guarantee you, at BEST, I will pass the house/location at least once before making it in the driveway/parking lot. At least. 

(Let's not even talk about how I went the wrong way out of my friend's neighborhood a few weeks ago and ended up on a street that made my mother say "OH MY" once she heard - a street that had gansta-like folks walking down a street littered with lowridin', beat up cars, in wife-beater tanks and saggy jeans, eyeing the confused blonde in the 4 door sedan like a giant Highlights magazine feature of "Which of these does not belong??")

I'm not even just talking about getting lost while driving. Oh no - I can get lost just as easily in person, too. Put me in a corn maze in October, and be prepared to pitch a tent and stay overnight. Tell me to go across the street and up the elevator to the 14th floor, and SOMETHING will happen along the way. 

So yeah, I was excited to have this new feature on my cell phone. I thought, problem solved. I will now be on time, or early, everywhere I go, and make it there on the first try. I can even give OTHER people directions!! Super ecstatic. 

Uh, no. It hasn't helped. If anything, it makes me more confused, because now I'm trying to read a map while driving. 

Sigh. 

I took the long way from Point A to Point B yesterday, by about 15 miles and 20 minutes, when I could have literally been there in about 4 1/2 minutes. 

Epic fail. 

I thought having directions would make everything easier. And it could, probably, if I was using the gps correctly, or maybe if I wanted to spring for the upgraded feature that costs so much $ per month. 

Until then, I'll just keep wingin' it and increasing my U-turn skills. 

It makes me think, though, how sometimes we forget the fact that we are totally lost and directionless without God's Word - our ultimate GPS system. We can have a copy of the Word and even read the Word, but unless we're applying it to our lives, it's as useless as me squinting at an upside down map while making a U turn in a crowded intersection (under a sign that bans U-turns. Not that that recently happened...)

Maps can be helpful, or useless. And while God's Word is never useless and never returns void, it won't give us the guidance and directions we so desperately need if we don't take the time to learn it, absorb it, and apply it. 

Hear me. This isn't just for those who are truly lost, those who haven't accepted Jesus as their Saviour. It applies to them, yes. Because they'll never find their way without Christ. 

But my point here goes for Believers, too. Christians. Those who claim to know Jesus and have a relationship with Him, but continue wandering around like they haven't a clue where they're supposed to go. They might know they're supposed to be elsewhere, they might realize they're on the wrong route, but they continue to go about as if they don't have the foggiest how to get to the right place. 

I've been there. What about you?

Here's a challenge for you today, fellow Believers - when was the last time you read your Bible? And I don't mean skimmed a Psalm on your way out the door in a rush, or read a quick verse in a devotional that encouraged you but remained surface level...I mean READ your Bible. For a period of time, maybe 15 minutes...at least? 

If you can't remember, it's probably time to sit down and read your Map for a bit.

Thankfully, God never bans U-turns. He always welcomes us back in the right direction. :)

Walk by...

This sums it up

http://scribblechicks.blogspot.com/2013/09/i-hate-satan-and-i-hate-ants-end.html

Yeah.....

My current theme....