M.L.S. Weech's Blog, page 44

Story Review: Within the Storm by Beth Frost from Alien Days Anthology

 

 

[image error]Cover image taken from the book’s Amazon buy page for review purposes under Fair Use doctrine.

Spoiler Free Summary:  Within The Storm by Beth Frost is the eighteenth story in the Alien Days Anthology. A grandmother sits her children down to tell the story of when an alien came to get shelter from a storm.

Character:  There wasn’t really any conflict in this story. I can say the main character is sympathetic. But without anything to struggle against, there wasn’t much pulling the story along. If you’ve ever helped someone get shelter from a storm, you know how this story goes. 

Exposition: This was better than the greater majority of the stories in this anthology. Despite being told in first person, this story doesn’t slow down to explain much.  

Worldbuilding: The story takes place on a farm on Earth, so there simply isn’t much world building.

Dialogue: The dialogue is conversational, but without any conflict, it felt mundane. It was like eavesdropping on the Waltons. 

Description: This was the strongest aspect of the story. The description was vivid with great attention to detail without forcing the story to come to a screeching halt. The characters received an equal amount of attention as the setting. All the senses got some sort of trigger.

Overall: This story just had no conflict. There was nothing pulling the story along. There was no danger. I can understand if the author intended to have an alien encounter story that didn’t involve some sort of invasion angle, but I had no reason to read other than I had paid for the book. For me, stories need something. No, the alien didn’t need to be hostile. We didn’t even need some sort of rush to save the alien from human experiments, but I certainly needed something. Maybe a “Keep him hidden” angle. Without a conflict to drive the story, I couldn’t get into it.

Thanks for reading

Matt

 

I’m Stepping Away From OffWorld

Greetings all,

Those of you who follow my blog understand I am a Christian trying to live a more-Christian life.

When we were approached about connecting Hazel with Interstellar Dust, the information I received was that it was just another comic, and that putting these two comics together would help both get out faster. I agreed, so OffWorld began to go into the publication process.

I was ignorant. I just wanted to get our comic out as soon as possible.

Recently, I learned that the other story has brief nudity and scenes that take place in locations of adult origin. There is no intercourse or overtly sexual acts according to the information I have.

Given my religious stance, I felt that even brief nudity is something I don’t want to be a part of. I worked with Collin, and he spoke with the other creators. They were polite and kind. Collin worked very hard to reach some arrangement. It was ultimately my decision to step away from the project.

This is because even if they were able to add clothes to the few scenes (I believe it is a total of two panels), there is still an entire scene that takes places at a location that is sexual in nature. I can’t speak with my mouth about God’s law and sin and then profit from a product that has such content.

The comic is still scheduled for release. Issue 1 has already gone  to print, so my name will appear on the Hazel side of that issue. From there, my name has been removed thanks to the hard work and patient understanding of my dear friend Collin. I have deferred any royalty  payments I had previously arranged to him. I will not be receiving any royalties from the sales of these comics, nor will I be selling OffWorld at any events I attend.

There have been talks that Hazel will still get her own comic run. If that is the case, I will happily sell the story Collin and I worked so hard to create at any events I attend.

Again, the fault is my own for not asking questions when this idea was sent to me. I never imagined a world where that would happen.

I also need to affirm once more that Collin was the ultimate professional. He understood where I was coming from. He worked very hard to create an arrangement where everyone could move forward as planned. I didn’t personally speak with the other creators, but everything I heard says they were equally professional and understanding.

I hope this explains everything. I also hope Hazel will have her shot as an individual comic or graphic novel. I’m still very proud of that story.

Thank you all for your patience and understanding.

V/R

Matt

Musings on Christianity 16

How Do I Know I’m Bearing Fruit?

In previous chapters, I talked about how discouraging it can be to notice the sin in your life. But if we are still in sinful flesh, how can we know we’re saved?

“So every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased true bears bad fruit.” (Matthew 7:17).

If we are bearing good fruit, this is a great indicator of our salvation. The Bible has several references to the work our redeemed lives produce. The parable of the sower goes into pretty great detail (Matthew 13:1-23). 

Galatians 6:7-10 also discusses this. But this brings the question, “What is good fruit?” “What should I see in my life?”

In searching for the things you should see, the first list that comes to mind is a pretty simple cross-reference. If Paul says to bear good fruit, what is the good fruit? In that same book of the Bible (Galatians 5:22-23), he’s kind enough to give us a list:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things, there is no law.”

Now, there is actually another list, a far more convicting list. There is the list of things a redeemed life should not have. That is the list of things that defile a person, which can be found in Matthew 15:19. Straight from the mouth of Jesus, he tell us what we should purge from our lives:

“For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.”

I’m not in the mood to argue what some of those terms mean. That’s the list from the mouth of Christ. I didn’t make it up, nor am I going to try to justify my savior’s own words. If a word on this list gives you pause, it’s not because the word is on the list; it’s because that word being on the list convicts you. If you feel defensive over any one of those terms, don’t defend yourself to me. I’m not going to condemn you. Instead, look in your own heart and ask yourself why the presence of that word on the list makes you feel defensive. 

When I train my students at DINFOS for informational videos (some might call them spots or commercials), I tell them that one thing that frustrates me is someone who shows a commercial of what not to do. What I mean is they show a Sailor in a bad uniform or pretending to do bad things. I don’t want to see bad examples, I want to see good examples. It’s not the same as saying, “don’t do this.” In the above reference to things that defile a person, Jesus simply states the things that defile a person. Again, he doesn’t portray the things they do, he just states them as wrong.

So what I want to do is focus my life and my efforts on the fruit of the Spirit? Why? Because if I bear good fruit, I have to be a good tree. A bad tree can not bear good fruit (Matthew 17:18-20).

Therefore, my hope is that if I focus on bearing good fruit, the rest will take care of itself. The Spirit’s work will be made manifest in me.

While thinking on this, I decided to actually delve deeper. Lists are fine and good, but  I don’t want to have love the way I think love works. I want to have love the way Paul (the author) meant it. Once more, Paul was very kind to offer us a description of what love is or, even more accurately, what love does.

“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

Now I have something to work with. For me, that’s a very convicting list. I’m known for all the wrong things (irritable, resentful) and I am not known for very many of the right things.

To combine thoughts in previous chapters, does this mean I am not saved? No. Why? Because my spirit mourns these faults. I can repent and be loving. I want to work at this. I want the love of Christ to work through me to bear this fruit.

And that is the crux of sanctification. An unrepentant, unredeemed person looks at his life and does one of two things: He says, “I’m not worried that I’m not very loving, I donate to the church every week, and so I’m good.” He says that or something to that effect, justifying his sin by pointing out his works. The thing is, our works aren’t what save us. Instead, we should seek out the work God does in us. The other thing an unrepentant, unredeemed person may do is give in because it seems like too much. You can’t be perfect, but what you should do is strive to that effect.

Christ’s righteousness, his perfection, is credited to us if we are in him. This isn’t a direct quote of 1 Corinthians 1:30, but it is what I base this faith on.

However, that only applies to those who seek Christ’s sanctifying work in their lives. All people sin, but the believers in Christ have forgiveness through Christ. His Spirit works in our lives to sanctify us. But the unrepentant live in their sin, showing their love of sin is greater than any lip service or token demonstrations of faith in Christ.

So though I may be convicted by that verse, I am encouraged that I have been shown the way, and I can now focus my thoughts on things that are excellent and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8).   

This is my current commitment, and I encourage all who seek Christ and to be more Christ like to do something similar. Don’t hide from the verses that make you feel guilt. Seek out the Lord’s discipline, for he disciplines those he loves (Hebrews 12:6-11). 

If we accept it and grow, we’re bearing the very fruit our lives should bear. There are more ways to bear fruit, but this is an area I felt I could improve in tremendously. As I grow, I hope to embody more and more attributes of Christ. I want to grow in Him and reflect Him more each day. This is just the latest manner I’ve chosen to do it. 

For our panel: What are some other fruits we could pursue? What should one do, or how should one react if they realize they’re not bearing good fruit? How do people go about changing? What are some things people like myself can do to help themselves be more loving?

MarsCon 2020: My First Con Outside of Maryland!

Greetings everyone,

[image error]Last week I took a moment to tell you all we were in Williamsburg, Virginia, for MarsCon, so I wanted to take a few moments to let you know how things went.

My main goal for this trip was the try a few new things and to get my work into hands of new readers.

I sold 28 books in total. Sojourn in Captivity drew the most interested, and that makes me happy since Perception of War is really something I’m going to write.  In comparison to last year, 28 books is fairly slow, but there wasn’t a ton of foot traffic at the event, and 28 is still a solid number of books sold based on my historical average.

The real star of the show is my wife. She’s a talented artist, and we had an idea. She takes photos of people and then draws chibi caricatures of them.

[image error]A simple paper and ink chibi is $5, and a full-color digital chibi is $15. She got a lot of attention even with a small spot on the table. She sold six chibis (three ink, three digital). She really stole the show in all the best ways, and I love her for the active role she’s taken in this journey.  If you’d like to be a chibi, you can order one by email here. She’s already had people contact her by social media to set up future orders, and that is super encouraging.

Why the art? Product. On. The. Shelf. Author copies of books are costly, and the percentage we make isn’t great. That puts the overhead for a convention at a high mark that’s unlikely to be met.  For instance, MarsCon cost us $708 for just the table and books. I would have had to sell every book I had on its own (no bundles) to make a profit. With my wife’s help, the art can pay for the table, and the books have a better chance to pay for themselves, which would allow us to make conventions an investment for profit rather than a marketing tool

Now, that dollar amount is higher because I bought essentially two-cons worth of books. But, if the art (low up front cost) can pay for the tables, we have a real chance.  This is because books and a table are normally about $444. This shifts depending on the event, but I’m currently optimistic that chibi’s can not only let my wife have some lime light (she’s always wanted to let her art be her career), but also take a step forward to making our little business profitable.

I hope you’ll send some emails and make some orders.

This was a pretty solid start to the 2020 tour. It was essentially a fun family vacation that allowed me to get books into the hands of new readers, and that was the gaol in this case. I’m grateful to everyone who stopped by to support our dreams.

Thanks for reading,

Matt

Story Review: Altered by Alexander Harrington from Alien Days Anthology

 

 

Hey all, quick admin note: I have an Instagram @m.l.s.weech_and_FeistyLeisty.  You can follow book stuff as well as the new art stuff we’re doing (mostly my wife).  I’ll talk more about that art stuff on Saturday, but I’d appreciate a follow if you’re on that platform.

[image error]Cover image taken from the book’s Amazon buy page for review purposes under Fair Use doctrine.

Spoiler Free Summary:  Altered by Alexander Harrington is the seventeenth story in the Alien Days Anthology. You are the character in an alien invasion story where body snatchers come in through the rain.

Character:  You read that correctly. This is the first story in I-don’t-know-how-long that has been written in second person. For this reason, I really couldn’t connect withe character because we’re too dissimilar. It was just too hard to connect a person who was nothing like me to myself. I think if second-person narrative is going to make a comeback, it would have to do so with choose-your-own-adventure stories. That way, the choices I make are mine, and it’s easier to connect with the character in the story. 

Exposition: The other down-side to second person narrative is that it forces everything to be exposition. I’m being told what’s happening to me while it’s happening. This combined with choices I’d never make cause me to really not associate well with the character. 

Worldbuilding: This story takes place on a modern-day Earth. There really isn’t much in the way of world building. It would probably be alright as a Twilight Zone episode, but there just isn’t enough character to make this story work for me.

Dialogue: There isn’t any dialogue. 

Description: There’s a lot of description for scene, but that’s where all the description is. The author couldn’t really tell you what you look like, so he couldn’t connect the reader to the character using personal features. 

Overall: I really do applaud the author for using second-person narrative. It’s important for authors to stretch themselves, and I can imagine this did a lot for Harrington in terms of growing a skill set. However, choosing that narrative boxed Harrington in. There was no dialogue to speak of or a chance to connect to a character we’re supposed to feel belongs to us. This problem made the story forgettable. 

Thanks for reading

Matt

 

Musings on Christianity 15

Am I Saved?

For an embarrassingly long time, I felt that the mere fact that I sinned meant that I wasn’t saved. I had this idea in my head that the saved don’t sin, and that’s just not true (1 John 1:8). I lacked the Biblical knowledge to understand the relationship between Christ and the redeemed.

I’d encourage any to read John MacArthur’s Saved Without a Doubt. That book is a much deeper analysis for people who ask themselves this question. For the purpose of this work, I’m going to focus on issues I faced and realizations I’ve had.

I’ve been formally baptized at least three times. The first was because everyone I knew was baptized. It was the thing people did at church. The second time was (if I remember correctly) because I went to a different church. The third was when I finally understood what baptism represents.

Baptism is not the means by which one is saved. Here’s what should be the sad part. In my trials of faith and sanctification, I’ve had some sins that took a long time to turn from. If you can believe it, several, several, times I’ve gone into my own bathroom and baptized myself.

On one hand, I could say that this was extremely charming but completely unnecessary. You see, I mourned my sin. I hated it and the hold it had on me. I mistakenly thought each time, “This time will be the last.” 

On the other hand, I was just being silly. Nothing about what I did was Biblically sound. My heart may have been in a good place, but no amount of bathing was going to keep me from sinning.

It could have been the last time I committed whatever sin it was. Each time I faced temptation, I clearly remember ways the Lord provided me an escape (1 Corinthians 10:13). I imagined myself the rope in a tug of war between Christ and sin.

I think that idea is what gave sin power over me it never should have had. We are not ropes in a tug of war. If we have faith in Christ Jesus, if we confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, we will be saved (Romans 10:9-10).

When we accept Christ as our savior, sin loses its hold on us. We become dead to sin and alive in Christ (Romans 6:11).

But over and over again I tried to free myself with my own power. I was under this impression that I had to help Christ somehow. The brain-twister is the fact that, that just isn’t how it works. Christ has overcome sin (1 Corinthians 15:55-57). Each time I thought I’d do something, each time I tried to stand on my own, I fell, and I fell hard. But when I turned to Christ, when I gave myself to him, sin lost its hold on me. Not all sin, but one of the larger sins in my life that I felt particularly convicted of. For some it might be lying. For others it might be addiction. The sin is less important than the breaker of sin’s chains.

So, the circular reasoning then says, “But that means I shouldn’t ever sin again.”

Well, we shouldn’t, and we don’t have to. Sin has no dominion over us (Romans 6:14).

However, we’re still living in the flesh. Have you ever felt that all you tend to do is what you hate about yourself? Have you ever felt that all the good things you want to do, you never seem to do? This is the war that wages in your own mind (Romans 7:16-24).

This sort of turmoil can lead one to believe they are wretched and cast out, forsaken because you persist in the sin you mourn (Romans 7:24).

This, is the salvation that Christ gives! His grace covers our sin and frees us from our iniquity. He gives us comfort when we mourn our sin (Matthew 5:4).

The trick is how sin is overcome because those who believe and long to follow his law and seek his righteousness will have it (Matthew 5:6). It is Christ who overcomes (1 John 5:4).

What I think happens is we forget this. We turn from Christ seeking to defeat temptation ourselves. We can’t. We were born in sin (Psalm 51:5).

All of these thoughts led me to a statement I still sometimes think to myself: “I wish the decision to do the right thing removed the temptation to do the wrong thing.”

For those of us who live in the flesh (which is everyone), temptation isn’t removed. In the resurrection, we’ll have perfect, sinless bodies, but only after that resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:35-38). 

In the mean time, stand strong, and we stand strong not by our own power, but in the power of Christ and the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-20). Another book by MacArthur Standing Strong, goes over this in great detail. I’m going to focus on the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.

If I had only known about that one tool, if I had only sought to study that weapon, the only weapon we use against temptation, my struggle would have been much easier. You see, we don’t deny temptation by our power or our will. We’ll lose every time. And that’s the mistake I kept making. I made promises to myself (promises I never really intended to keep because they were only deals with myself).

Our savior taught us how to use it, but I didn’t read the Bible until just a few years ago, so I was hopeless.

Just after He was baptized, the Spirit led Christ into the wilderness for 40 days and 40 nights to be tempted by Satan himself. (Documented in Matthew 4.)

And so Satan attacked. Christ didn’t simply cast Satan out. Christ didn’t speak some new command or special phrase. He didn’t resist by simple refusal. What he did, was speak the Word. This is how one uses the Sword of the Spirit.

When Satan dared Christ, who hadn’t eaten in 40 days and nights, to turn rock into bread, Christ quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 (Matthew 4:4), using the Word of God the way an expert swordsman uses his sharpened blade. 

One would think that’s all there is to it. But just as someone can misinterpret the Bible, Satan can flat out manipulate it. Just look at what Satan does next:

He took Christ up to the top of the temple and quoted Psalm 91:11-12. If we don’t study, we can actually be more dangerous with the Word than if we didn’t read it, just as an untrained swordsman is especially dangerous to himself.   

Christ however, an expert in the Word because He is the Word (John 1:14), knew how to counter that false use of the Bible. He countered that promise of Psalm 91 with a more important, and relevant verse, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test (Deuteronomy 6:16).” 

A third time he was tested, and again Christ went to the scripture, quoting Deuteronomy 6:13-14.

This, my friends, is how we defend ourselves against temptation. We turn to the Word of God. My friends, if you believe and proclaim Christ, you are saved. If you mourn sin and yearn for righteousness, you will be comforted and satisfied. These things are guaranteed. If you stumble, you will be protected because once you belong to God, nothing, nothing, can take you from him (Romans 8:38-39). 

Your salvation is assured in Christ, so this means your question is how to withstand temptation. My question, was how to resist. The answer is simple: Study the word. Read it. Read it the way you’d eat healthy to grow strong. Read it the way you’d exercise to be fit.

Then, when temptation comes, seek the word. This isn’t a thing I can do as readily as Christ. Sometimes I know a verse right away. Sometimes, I have to look up parts of the Bible until I find one that helps my heart, and even the process of searching the Word for help is help in itself, and the verse you find then becomes another pass of the whetstone to sharpen your sword.

Doing so will also give you assurance in your salvation. As you read and study, you’ll learn more about Christ, and what He does for you.

For our panel: What verses can we study to learn more about salvation? What are some great, basic verses someone very young in the faith can memorize to start with? What are some verses we can turn to if we stumble? Would any of you care to speak more in depth about the other components of the Armor of God?

Hope to see you at MarsCon!

Greetings all!

My 2020 tour is up and running! I’m hanging out at MarsCon in Williamsburg, Virginia! That’s right, Weech is expanding his horizons!

This is my first time at the event, so I don’t really know what to expect.

What you can expect though are some 99-cent deals!

[image error]

From now until around midnight on Monday, Repressed, Stealing Freedom, and An Unusual Occupation are on sale for the convention. If you haven’t tried one of those books, this is a great time. If you have read one, maybe recommend it (or gift it) to a friend you think would like it.

As usual, I’ll do a post with some photos and information about how it went in terms of a business trip.  For now, I just wanted to let you all know what I was up to.

If you’re in the area, please stop by and say hi!

Thanks for reading,

Matt

 

Story Review: Another Day, Another Dollar by Juleigh Howard-Hobson from Alien Days Anthology

 

[image error]Cover image taken from the book’s Amazon buy page for review purposes under Fair Use doctrine.

Spoiler Free Summary:  Another Day, Another Dollar by Juleigh Howard-Hobson is the sixteenth story in the Alien Days Anthology. During an alien version of a zombie apocalypse, one man finds a way to make a few bucks.

Character:  I re-scanned the story a few times and didn’t even find a name. So he’s got a “House, M.D.” sort of jerk-face appeal to him, but other than establishing he hates people and likes money, there’s no real character development in this story. 

Exposition: This story was told in first person, so that will always increase the amount of exposition, but I still feel there was a lot more exposition than necessary. I think if this were the first chapter in a story with character development, I’d love it. As a stand-alone story, it’s just a guy complaining about things while he kills alien zombies. Some people will love that. I’m just not one of them. 

Worldbuilding: This story takes place on an alternate Earth. There isn’t much more to it that that. We get some details on how this world came to be, but even that was buried in the aforementioned exposition.

[image error]Image of Howard-Hobson was taken from her Amazon author page for review purposes under Fair Use doctrine. 

Dialogue: This is not applicable as it’s just an internal monologue. 

Description: This is probably the best part of the story. Howard-Hobson’s description is very good. It’s detailed without being overwhelming. It’s strongest in describing the action and the aliens, but there is attention paid to all the senses, and that’s a positive. 

Overall: So this was a decent zombie scene. If you like a bit of zombie-killing mayhem, you probably won’t regret picking it up. It feels a bit out of place in the anthology, but it’s a nice little character scene. It drags a bit here or there, but it wasn’t boring. I personally need a bit more from the character than I got (or more of something), but it was ok. I’d say this is sort of like a pop-corn movie for readers.  

Thanks for reading

Matt

 

Musings on Christianity 14

What Good is Faith?

Some people seek faith in times of trials. Some times that faith is proven true, and sometimes that faith is proven false. What happens is that people associate, “God gave me what I want” as confirmation of His existence, and they associate, “God didn’t give me what I want” as confirmation of His rejection or even that He doesn’t exist.

The trouble with that metric is that people forget He’s sovereign. Our God, the creator of the Earth and the fullness therein, our God, the creator of the universe, has a perfect plan. For us to hang our belief in Him on a desire, no matter how important, is to forget that he is wise beyond measure (Romans 11:33).

That doesn’t stop us from doing it, and when we don’t get what we want, we cry out in anger, “What good is faith!?”

I have to reply to that question with another question. What was your faith in? Is your faith in God? If so, trust Him. He may deny your supplication. It doesn’t mean He’s abandoned you or that He doesn’t love you. It doesn’t mean that you’re not saved. If He gives you what you want, that’s not exactly confirmation of your salvation either. At best, it’s evidence.

But we constantly use our own trials as a test for Him rather than understanding that 1) we should never test God (Deuteronomy 6:16 and Matthew 4:7) and 2) those trials we face are our tests. I don’t believe they are unkind tests done just to hurt us. Instead, they are trials that allow us to strengthen ourselves and glorify God. That doesn’t make our trials fun, but this is the crux of this chapter.

The good of faith isn’t so that we can get what we want, and that’s how most people perceive it. The good of faith is so that we know that no matter what happens, God is with us (Psalm 23:1-6).

When my mother was diagnosed with cancer, I had all the faith in the world that God would heal her. From my point of view, He did. He healed her of every pain and sadness and called her to Heaven. That’s not exactly what I had hoped for, but the good of my faith wasn’t to keep the person I wanted to keep, it was to have hope that the God I serve knows what I need. Everything He does is is for my good (Jeremiah 29:11-13).

If we make our faith conditional on the idea of what we want, then our faith will be in vain. This is because if our faith is based on obtaining desire, we’re not showing faith in God; we’re showing that we feel He exists to serve us rather than the other way around.

That’s not to say faith isn’t rewarded in the graceful, generous granting of prayers. In the last chapter I showed you just how wonderfully God grants prayers. Those who pray to Him, He hears (Jeremiah 29:11-13). 

Too many people though consider their faith a test, which is an insult to God right off the bat (Deuteronomy 6:16). People think, “God, if you do this for me, I’ll believe!” 

There’s just not a lot of evidence that thought is true. “God if you get me out of this bad situation, I’ll be yours.” That’s exactly the sort of thing the Israelites said while they were slaves to Egypt. God answered the prayer, and they grumbled every step of the way to the promised land and beyond.

Let’s take this back a few levels of infinity. Have you or has your child ever said, “Dad, if you do this for me I promise I’ll … “

Did you keep that promise?

If you’re like me, you answered “… sometimes?” And you know what, sometimes we prove true to our word to God. Gideon was a coward. He wanted to have faith, but he truly needed signs. So he asked for some. They were very specific signs too. God graciously, patiently answered those prayers, and Gideon became a great hero because of the courage God gave him (Judges 6-8).

But even a casual search of the Bible shows just how quickly people forget that they cried out for God, got what they wanted, and then turned away from him.

On the same token, even the most devout servant might pray for something hoping God will grant his supplication. That prayer may be denied. The point of faith is that we trust God has a reason. On the eve before his crucifixion, Christ, our Lord and Savior, God in flesh, the son of God, prayed that God would, “let this cup pass from me (Matthew 26:36-56).” 

That’s a powerful verse to me. The son of God asked if it were possible that he not be crucified. I’ve never heard many people preach or speak on this, but it is so important and so telling. Here is the point of faith.

It’s not the request. “Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me;” it’s the trust in whom one’s praying to. “Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

And that is the answer. The point of faith isn’t getting what you want. It’s knowing that even if you don’t get what you want, your father in Heaven knows what’s best not just for you, but for all.

Still, we see the denial of our supplications as rejection. But is it true? Have you ever asked your earthly parent for something and was told no? Does your parent not love you? Sure, there are some who actually think or even know their parent doesn’t love them. It’s a sad truth in this world, but on the whole, most people I know have at least one parent they know loves them. And that parent did not in any way give them everything they wanted when they wanted it. Heck, my mom actually came pretty close. I struggle to think of a single thing I wanted that she didn’t eventually give to me, but they’re out there. I remember once wanting to join the chess club (or some such club). My mom said no. Oh was I mad. I was a selfish, spoiled little brat. I gave my mom hell for denying me this one thing. I’d have to work darn hard to think of another example, but I flipped when this one stupid thing was denied me. I was somewhere between 12 and 13.

What I deserved in that moment was punishment. She didn’t. But even in my selfish, childish tantrum, I knew she loved me. Even when being denied what we want, most of us know our parents love us, and God is infinitely more loving, infinitely more compassionate.

Our faith isn’t for the sake of obtaining what we want; it’s for the sake of holding on to the only real hope we have. God’s will be done, not our own (Matthew 26: 39). If we trust His will, we can know that whatever happens, whether we like it or not, it’s all part of a perfect plan.

For our panel: What are your favorite Biblical examples of faith being rewarded?  What do we do, or how to we stand strong, when our most heartfelt supplication is defined (the death of a loved one)? Why do we so easily fall away so quickly after we get the very thing we begged God for in our time of need? How can we guard ourselves against doing that?

My Top 3 Reads of 2019

It’s a new year, which means it’s time to share my top three reads of 2019 with you all.  Goodreads says I’ve read 21 books in 2019. I know I’m reading less and less. I’m hoping to find more time to read, but I have to find a balance between reading and writing. I’m also reading much larger books. This list was made without regard to publisher, format, or author.

How I did it:  I kept track of books I liked and mentally compared one to the other. Without further delay, here’s my list.

[image error]#3 Skyward by Brandon Sanderson: You can find my review for that book here.  Sanderson is probably going to be on my list every year I reads something from him. He’s my favorite author in the business. Skyward was a charming story that had a universe that intrigues me. Spin is fun. It probably fell because it’s YA. It’s a great story that I enjoyed, but I tend to be drawn to a bit more drama than YA goes here or there. Still, this book’s pages flew by as I read.

 

 

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#2 Transcendence and Rebellion by Michael G. Manning:  The rotation I have on reviews (I review in the order that I’ve read) means I won’t have reviews for number two or one. While I haven’t had the chance to review it, I will say this book was bitter sweet for me. I love Mordecai and his saga. I love that world. The conclusion was appropriate and satisfying. I’m just sad to see it over (like, very over). I still think Embers of Illeniel is the segment of this world that takes the cake,  but Riven Gates was great in that it brought all the Illeniel generations together. There were some character decisions that I wasn’t such a fan of, and Rebellion did a decent job of sweetening the sour taste the last book left in my mouth. All in all, I love the characters so much. Listen, if you love fantasy (especially fantasy that’s just a shade darker than normal, just a shade mind you) try this who series out. These books have shown that Manning is an author who readers should wait with eager longing to write another. In fact, he has another saga out there I mean to start here soon.

 

[image error]#1 Blunt Force Magic by Lawrence Davis:  Again, I haven’t had the pleasure of posting that review yet, but man do I love it when a cool cover contains a cool book. If you like Dresden, you NEED to read this book! It has all the emotional feel and charm that Dresden has with a new world of magic. I couldn’t put it down, and I couldn’t wait to add its sequel to my TBR.  This book has everything I look for in a great book: Great characters (plural), interesting world, fast plot, great ending. If I could only recommend one book (book, not author) for you, it’s this one.

 

 

So that’s my top three. What are yours? Why? Do you have a review you can link it to? I’d love to reblog it for you.

Thanks for reading,

Matt