Kellyn Roth's Blog: Kellyn Roth, Author, page 33

You’re Never Too Far Gone for God

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In these last few days, I’ve decided to attempt to finish Before a Fall, the Gibson Ashfield story, in a ridiculously short period of time (more on that later). This means, of course, that I’ve had to immerse myself in the characters, and … wow. Just wow.

Gibson Ashfield is a complicated man. And, being a complicated man, he has some complicated problems. I’ll explain more about this in a bit, but let it just suffice to say that writing his story out is slowly opening my eyes.

He’s not a good man. I’ve written him in a somewhat sympathetic way, but truly, he’s the villain. In the words of the title character of Megamind (2010): “I don’t save the day, I don’t fly off into the sunset, and I don’t get the girl.” Essentially, villains don’t win – and villains probably aren’t going to get to go to Heaven, either.

Well. We’ll see about that.

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When writing a villain, especially in older films and novels before the rush of “redeemed bad guy” movies (one of which is Megamind), authors and film-makers alike enjoyed giving them dramatic deaths.

For many of these villains, death seemed the only option. There was no way they were going to change.

So kill them off. No one in the audience expects them to go anywhere but Hell – and honestly, do we even care? They’re that evil! *shudders*

Yet … these last couple days, I’ve been digging into the mind of a villain. A villain who doesn’t believe in himself – and who the audience doesn’t really believe in, either.

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In Gibson’s mind, he is irredeemable. He may seem perfectly fine with living his life the way he is – but the truth is, he doesn’t believe he is capable of change.

Gibson had never really tried to be good—he wanted to be better than his father, but he also wanted to enjoy life without constraint. But even if he did try, he wouldn’t succeed.

~ At Her Fingertips | Kellyn Roth ~

There are so many people out there who don’t even admit that they are sinning – but for every person who denies that they are bad, there are even more who deny that they are capable of good.

You may be one of them. I know sometimes I feel like giving up. Like I’m just … too bad. Too evil. Too sinful.

I know it’s not easy to get past these feelings. It’s not like it’s going to happen just because you read this blog post. You’ll have to really believe it.

But you can keep this thought foremost in your brain: “It’s not true.”

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“I don’t think you’re bad, Gibson. I think you’re lost.”

~ Peter Strauss | At Her Fingertips ~

Though not perfectly accurate and probably more empathetic than realistic, Peter has the right idea.

We’re all lost. Every single one of us. There’s not a single person on earth who is perfect, there never will be, and there never has been (save Jesus).

You see … Our salvation isn’t because of what we do. It isn’t because of who we are. It isn’t even because of our good intentions.

Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

(Psalm 51:5)

So it’s not what you’ve done wrong that makes you sinful. You were born sinful. No matter what you do, you don’t become any more sinful based on your actions.

However, because of the sin inside of you, you will commit sins.

“There is none righteous, no, not one. There is none who understands;

There is none who seeks after God.“

(Romans 3:10-11)

To return to our original example, Gibson Ashfield is not a bad man because of what he has done wrong. Yes, he has done many wrong things; however, these wrong things are nothing but an outward showing of what’s inside him.

Without Jesus, Gibson – and everyone else, in fact – is full of sin. Hopeless. And, yes, irredeemable.

In the words of Judy Kee:

“God is so big and great and powerful that He just can’t be around sin of any kind. I mean, He can do whatever He wants to, but we can’t be around Him if we sinned. He hates sin, and sin gets in us so it’s a part of us, even before we’re born.”

~ Flowers | Kellyn Roth ~

However, there’s hope.

This is a somewhat simplified version, but let’s turn back to Flowers for the rest of the story:

“God loves everyone so much that He wants us all to come live with Him. But that couldn’t happen … so God sent His Son, Jesus, into the world to save us from our sins. He died on the cross, and so we can be clean.”

~ Judy Collier | Flowers ~

And that’s it. It’s not about what you can do for God, or how pure you can be, or all the good deeds you’ve done.

It’s about Jesus. It’s about the fact that He died on the cross to save us from our sins – and that’s it. We are saved. We’ve only to accept His freely-given gift.

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Here’s what the Bible says about salvation.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.”

(John 5:24)

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

(Ephesians 2:8-9)

“Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”

(Romans 10:9)

Now, I don’t know about you, but it doesn’t look like God is locking people out of Heaven because they’re too bad.

In my AWANAs class, whenever we ask the kids, “What does Jesus look like?” they hold out their arms and say, “Come to Me!” And that’s the truth of it. The honest and one and only truth.

God is standing there with open arms, waiting for you. But you have to become humble, let go of your stubborn pride, let go of yourself before you can go to Him.

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But how can you know that you’re really saved? If you keep messing up? If you aren’t sure of Him? If you have doubts and fears? If the world still tempts you, if your life is so hard, and it’s impossible to see God in it?

Well … you can believe that you are truly saved because God said so.

If you gave yourself to Him, you are saved, once and for all. That’s it. You don’t need to doubt your salvation because He is your salvation, and He is always there for you.

“And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

(Acts 2:21)

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

(Romans 8:38-38)

“The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”

(Romans 8:16)

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Now, I’m not going to give away spoilers, but suffice to say there is hope for Gibson Ashfield … and in fact, there’s hope for everyone.

There’s nothing that can keep us from God. If we cry out to Him, He will always hear us and answer.

So don’t worry about whether or not you’re worthy of His grace. You aren’t. But He’s so much greater than your sins.

Let’s close with one of my favorite songs.

Overrun By Your Love by Erika Mathews (Blog Tour)

Overrun By Your Love, a collection of inspirational poetry by Erika Mathews, has been released! Join in the excitement with the giveaway below, and don’t forget to check out the other blog tour stops here.

Also, this will be a short post because the internet is still out (arggggggg), and so time is limited for getting this blog post finished, scheduled, etc.

A Dozen Books Reviewed in 10 Words or Less (+An Announcement!)

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What? I can’t always put out amazingly fun posts. Though I hope you’ll enjoy this one! It isn’t exactly a normal review post. It’s a collection of short reviews (with a longer review included for those who want to know more).

Hopefully you’ll enjoy this post, and even if you don’t, I’m offering a quick gift because I love you all and want you to get real worth out of my posts. So even if you don’t read for the post, read for the gift (and the accompanying announcement)!

Also, with this post, I’ll be down to eleven reviews due! I mean, obviously I’m going to need to read through fifteen books I need to read, but whatever. Let’s call it eleven. *facepalm* Yeahhh, reading slumps are no fun!

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A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist

Second bluest skies host heated romance for a Christian novel.

This was actually a pretty amusing novel, but there was a ton of physical attraction between the leads. Basically, Anna is drooling over Joe’s superior muscles and whatnot, and it was soooo annoying – and then there were several almost-sex-scenes between the characters (who eventually married, of course)! Also, it rains a lot more in Seattle than in this book.

Content: 4/5 for multiple references of marital relationships and a ton of lusting.

Buy on Amazon ~ Add on Goodreads

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I’ll Be Seeing You by Melody Carlson

In need of editing, but intriguing plot and characters captivate!

There is no way on heaven or earth that the girl on the cover is Irish. She’s Italian or Spanish at the very least. There were several historical inaccuracies in this novel as well, and like I said, it needs a lot of editing. I did enjoy it, though!

Content: 2/5. Written for adults and contains romance, but no inappropriate content.

Buy on Amazon ~ Add on Goodreads

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As Time Goes By by Melody Carlson

Second book shows Margaret becoming annoying and includes more typos.

In the second book, it seemed to drag a bit, and I really came to dislike Margaret, who is an unrepentant worrier. Also, there mother is the worst mother in the history of mothers. Please grow up a little, woman, and support your family! Also, someone edit this series.

Content: 2/5. Romance once again, and some references to immoral movie stars. However, no outright content.

Buy on Amazon ~ Add on Goodreads

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String of Pearls by Melody Carlson

We all knew the love interest wasn’t going to die.

Okay, but honestly, didn’t we all know that going in?!

The Reluctant Godfather by Allison Tebo: Blog Tour

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AAAAAAH THAT NEW COVER, Y’ALL! The Reluctant Godfather was amazing before, but now it’s got a gorgeous new cover and has been professionally edited. Does anyone else long for a copy of the new edition??? #soon

Okay, *takes a deep breath* I’ll stop fangirling for a moment and talk seriously about this wonderful little book and the accompanying blog tour (which I’m so thrilled to have been given the opportunity to host!).

The Reluctant Godfather is by far the most original take on the Cinderella story which I have ever read. (You can read my full review here.) So let’s talk about it a little!

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First, let’s talk about the book we’re featuring.

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The Reluctant Godfather by Allison Tebo

A humorous and magical re-telling of Cinderella from a unique perspective.

Burndee is a young and cantankerous fairy godfather who would rather bake cakes than help humans. A disgrace to the fairy order, Burndee has only two wards entrusted to his care…a cinder girl and a charming prince.

A royal ball presents Burndee with the brilliant solution of how to make his wards happy with the least amount of effort. He’ll arrange a meeting and hope the two fall in love.

The debut novella from Allison Tebo, ‘The Reluctant Godfather’ is a new addition to the charming fairy tale tradition of Cameron Dokey and K.M. Shea.

Buy on Amazon ~ Buy from the Author

Now, as if the book wasn’t amazing enough, the author is honestly one of the funnest, most interesting, most encouraging people on the internet!

Alli has been my friend almost since I got on Goodreads, and she’s encouraged me both as a shiny-happy person and as a Christian sister. 

Writing Will Get Easier

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Writing is tough. Don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise. It takes a lot of effort, it’s stressful, and more often than not it brings little or not reward. However … we still write. And it’s still hard. But I can promise you one thing: It’s going to get easier the more you write.

You will never be the “perfect writer.” You will never put out perfect first drafts or twist every phrase perfectly or be Jane Austen (because there’s only one of her), and you will always, always be learning.

However, let’s take one post to talk about how writing will get easier the more you practice it.

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You’ll make a habit of it.

When you first start writing – or even if you’ve been writing for a long time but haven’t done so consistently – writing isn’t something you just do.

It’s not a part of you, not a part of your life. Not yet, anyway.

You see, writing is habit that you must develop, and that takes time. Sure, right now you may feel inspired or driven to write at certain times, but sometimes, as a new or unpracticed writer, you experience a slump or writer’s block … and then you can’t write.

However, this will not always be the case. The longer you write, the more you will be able to write – even when you’re not inspired.

A lot of writers tell me that writing is “inspired” and “art,” which in a way it is – word art. However, if you’re serious about writing and want to make a career out of it, you can’t just write when you’re inspired to do so.

You have to write even when you don’t feel like it.

And this may cause some moans at first, but trust me, you will eventually learn to write even when you’re not inspired. To write even when you’re tired. To write even when you don’t want to.

So don’t give up hope when writer’s block threatens and your inspiration wanes. Just keep writing. Someday it’ll just be something you do, and you’ll barely have to force yourself.

I think I’m about halfway to this place myself. Most of the time I can force myself to write a couple hundred words or a blog post even if I’m not particularly inspired. One needs to discipline oneself, but it is totally possible – and necessary for those who want to make it into some beyond a casual hobby.

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It gets faster.

And no, I’m not just talking about you increasing your typing speed.

Let’s Catch Up A Little

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First of all … I am so proud of my photo-shopping skills. Like, seriously, y’all. Me and my jeep commander and my chocolate Dairy Queen milkshake can go ANYWHERE*.

Also, to those of you who are concerned that I’ll drive off the road because I’m not looking + driving one-handed (who needs two hands to drive a car?? Seriously!?!) + I was going 70 when this picture was taken … y’all can not be my friend anymore.

I’m a daredevil. And I already have a Mommy who’s doing a perfectly good job, thank you very much. So let’s start the post and stop mothering me!

*If you didn’t notice (like my dumb friends), look in the background of the graphic.**

**No, I didn’t go to England. Y’all will hear about that if it ever happens!

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So obviously in the two months* since I’ve been gone, some things have happened in my life (off and on the internet). So really quickly I’m going to just talk about what those are and whatnot. (A lot of other things were brought up in this post if you haven’t seen already.)

So without further ado, I present … Kell in the last two months!

*WHAT?!? It’s been that long?!?!

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Emotional Breakdowns??? Okay, not that extreme, but …

I’ve been having some difficult times with my emotions and whatnot. And especially with my relationship with God. It’s been a bit of a tough year.

My grandpa, who I love very much, will die soon, which is hard to wrap my head around. (He’s “Toastie” from the IvIn dedication for people who saw that.) I’m also stressed about my dad’s job situation/health and other family issues.

I’m having a tough time seeing my friends, AWANAs is over so I don’t have that great “serving kids” thing that I adore, and of course school gives me more time. #timeisbad #exceptineedmore #help We might not have band next year – which would not be good. #identitycrisis

There are other things, but this blog is public. So let’s stop.

So yeahhhh … I’ve been hating myself and feeling sorry for myself and annoyed at myself and hating others and feeling sorry for others and annoyed at others. None of these six moods have helped a ton.

The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon: Blog Tour Wrapup

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Well, it’s happened! Angela R. Watts‘s The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon is officially launched! And that was the first time I hosted a blog tour for money. *gasps* #somercenary

And don’t worry … we’ll be back to our schedule at this! I’m planning some fun posts, so definitely stay tuned for that.

Also, I just want to say … thank you, Ang! 

The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon by Angela R. Watts {Review!}

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Title: The Thief, The Damsel, and The Dragon

Author: Angela R. Watts

Genre: Christian Contemporary Romance

Setting: North Carolina, United States

Publisher: Angela R. Watts

Source: from author in exchange for an honest critique. No review required and no compensation exchanged.

Overall Rating: 4.5/5 stars

The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon by Angela R. Watts

“… the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.” ~ Psalms 91:13

Edward Prosner is going to steal from the small town mayor of Fall Springs, North Carolina. He’s got a flawless plan of action and is determined to return honor and justice to his father’s good name. The problem he faces? He needs a date for the mayor’s dinner party.

Lucy Levitt is a huge romantic at heart, but with her family’s ranch and her part-time job, she has no time for dating. She believes God will place her soulmate in her life when the time is right. When the new man in town asks her out, how can she say no?

The first date seems ordinary enough, but then they begin to realize that they can’t fight their dragons alone.

Buy on Amazon ~ Add on Goodreads

I originally read The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon as a beta-reader for Angela. Though not quite in its completed form then, it was amazing!

It was immediately the kind of book one begins and goes, “Hey, I gotta keep reading!” This was mostly due to the writing style, but it wasn’t long until the characters, setting, and plot dragged me down, and I was a goner!

You may think I’m biased. After all, the author is a very close, very dear friend to me and sister in Christ. I beta-read this book and have since helped the author get ready for publication and organized her blog tour.

However … this review contains my honest opinions. It really is good. I promise. Read it yourself if you’re not convinced!

PLOT: 4/5

Wow … definitely not what I was expecting!

Well, I guess I wasn’t sure what I was expecting going in. The only other story I’ve read by my friend Ang, Seek, was of a completely different genre (more spy thriller than romance, haha, and certainly a bit darker!).

I knew Ang and I think a lot alike when it comes to romance in books, so I wasn’t concerned about that, but … I was wondering what all was going on in my action/adventure-writing friend’s mind! Contemporary Christian romance? Like a Hallmark power-puff thing??!!

Turns out, there was a beautiful, lazy Southern summer romance with amazing Christian themes and a fantastic writing style! From the very first sentence this novel sucked me in and wouldn’t let me go!

CHARACTERS: 5/5

Lucy and Ed are now one of my favorite couples! They belong together. Hush, no arguing!

Lucy is one of the sweetest, most fun female leads I’ve ever met. From the first time I met her, I was enchanted! Honestly, so much Southern charm and honey and just … ugggh! I love her! She is my best friend, okay? (Apologies to Bailey; you’re not Southern, so you’re gonna lose.)

Ed … well, I wasn’t sure what to think of him at first. He’s a rebel, and though I felt bad for him, I was also a bit annoyed at his flesh-ness. (You know, the lack of Jesus Christ and the much of Ed!) But by the end, I was on his team!

There were other amazing characters such as Lucy’s family (THE WHOLE FAMILY! if I went into each of them, this review would run too long, so I’d better stop!

SETTING: 5/5

LET ME GO TO NORTH CAROLINA. PLEASE. I’LL DO ANYTHING! (relatively speaking)

Maybe if I bug the Marine Corps* enough, my sister’s husband will get stationed close to there, and we can visit. Not that *coughs* I want her to move even farther away, butttt … y’know. It’d be a nice perk. I don’t like Cali all that much, sooo …

Seriously, though, the setting was absolutely perfect. Love the Southernness, love the summerness, love the people who inhabit this Southern summer!

*yes, I do realize that government agencies are not at my beck and call … I just wish* …

**the more I think about it, the more I wish I had some sort of diplomatic immunity …

WRITING: 4/5

WHOA, there! This writing style!

CONTENT: 1/5

Language: n/a

Violence: n/a

Sexual: n/a

Other: romance and denial (y’know, the river in Africa). Not really content, but y’know …

Probably good for all ages, recommended for teens.

OVERALL: 4.5/5

Recommended to any lovers are fun characters, an amazing plot, a grabbing writing style, Southern summers, and sweet romances. Definitely get this book and read the heck out of it!

Review by Kellyn Roth of Reveries Reviews

Remember to check out the blog tour and giveaway while you’re here! You definitely don’t want to miss out on the giveaway, and of course there are other bloggers posting fun stuff, too!

Angela’s also been posting on her blog about various things relating to the book. Be sure to check that out!

 

TTFN!

~Kellyn Roth~

Goodreads · Facebook · Twitter

p.s.

Does this sound like a fun book to you? What dragons are ravaging the countryside of your mind? (If you don’t mind sharing.) How are you dealing with them/how have you dealt with them in the past?

The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon: Blog Tour Kickoff!

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Well, it’s happening! My dear friend Angela R. Watts is publishing her first book – a contemporary romance novella, The Thief, the Damsel, and the Dragon! I had the privilege of beta-reading … and now of hosting the blog tour!

Now before you run off … there’s a giveaway as well as tons of fun posts by tons of fun bloggers! So stick around – it’s gonna be tons of fun!

Also, Ang and I would both appreciate your support.

Well, who won the giveaway?

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A quick service announcement before we get into a blog tour which starts today!

The winner of the following six historical romances in paperback …

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Is …

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Rebekah Deedrick

Congratulations! I’ll be emailing you momentarily!

Love ya!

TTFN!

~Kellyn Roth~

Goodreads  ·  Facebook  ·  Twitter

p.s.

Excited for the new blog? BECAUSE IT’S REALLY HAPPENED NOW, Y’ALL!!!