Sarah L. Frantz's Blog, page 9

Monday Morning Washing in His Word

Nehemiah 8

Seventh month, Rolls around

Israel’s settlers, Gathered together

Water Gate, Square filled

Ezra brings, Moses’ Law

People’s ears, Were attentive

Ezra stood, Upon platform

Six men, Seven men

He between, Law reading

He opened, People stood

Ezra blessed, The Lord

Great God, “Amen, amen.”

Hands lifted, Faces bowed

The Levites, Helped them

People wept, With understanding

“This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.”

Understanding led, To rejoicing

Festival observed, Booths built

First time, Captivity refugees

Observe since, Nun’s Jeshua

Like this, All together

And with, Great joy

Obedience leads, To rejoicing

Eighth day, Solemn assembly

FROM THE SWING FICTION FEATURE FRIDAY: A Time to Build

by Dana Bell

Come read about Dana’s other work here, here, here… and here!

Author Dana Bell has written an intriguing short story… I love the animal’s communications with our protagonist, Jehna. I don’t want to give anything else away, so it stops here!

I do have the author’s permission to share these characters are featured in her upcoming book release, Homefall Search, the first in a new trilogy. Dana’s novel God’s Gift is the prequel to the Five Systems/Borders universe and the Winter Trilogy.

Ben Avery edited this diverse, edgy, eclectic, thrilling, masterful anthology inspired by Ecclesiastes 3.

If you love an anthology and want to add ours to your library, you may purchase your copy here!

It is available in Kindle, paperback, or hardcover!

Or you can visit my Etsy, Somebody’s Luggage to find single signature author prints by me in hardcover and paperback.

(And please consider following our anthology authors on Amazon and/or Goodreads if this is your jam.)

Monday Morning Washing in His Word

Nehemiah 2

First person

Tells King

Sadness filling

Because homeland

Falters, breaks

Crumbles apart

King Artaxerxes

Seeks request

“If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my ancestors’ graves, so that I may rebuild it.”

How long?

Return when?

Nehemiah answers

With dates

Letters of

Kingly protection

Grant travel

Royal authority

Beyond river

Governors displeased

That someone

Sought welfare

Israel’s people

Not forgotten

Jerusalem inspection

Three days 

Nighttime excursion

Of walls

“In ruins

We lie,

In burnt

Disgrace sit,

Shall we

In graciousness

Kingly protection

Jerusalem rebuild?”

God’s hand

Favored this

Agreement came

among rebuilders

But mocking 

Ridicule without

And some things never change.

MONDAY MORNING WASHING IN HIS WORD

Ezra 6

King Darius,

Searches scrolls

Not Babylon,

But Ecbatana

Media’s province,

Contains Cyrus

Direction from,

Year One’s

Reign He,

Issued decree

Concerning God’s,

Jerusalem House

Be rebuilt,

Return articles

And Darius, 

Further directs

Governor Tattenai,

And associates

In essence,

“Hands off.”

Jewish elders,

Will oversee

The God

Of heaven’s

Worship reinstated,

And why

For intercession,

And prayer

For King

Darius & kin

They obeyed,

House finished

Sixth year,

Darius reign

Celebration erupted,

With joy

To see, 

His house

Returned exiles,

Kept passover

“It was eaten by the people of Israel who had returned from exile, and also by all who had joined them and separated themselves from the pollutions of the nations of the land to worship the Lord, the God of Israel.”

With joy,

God granted

(NRSV, ZONDERVAN 1989)

FROM THE SWING FICTION FEATURE FRIDAY: A Time to Tear Down

by Stephen E. Seale

In pre-diluvian earth, one of the greatest tragedies unfolds resulting in worldwide destruction. The Creator is not taken by surprise and neither are His servants. I enjoyed seeing Enoch, Methuselah, and Noah obeying God in simplicity and trust. This is a well-crafted story with unusual settings and “what-ifs.” I thoroughly enjoyed it!

To learn more about Stephen and his work, please visit this website link… or here… or on amazon here… or on Youtube!

Ben Avery edited this diverse, edgy, eclectic, thrilling, masterful anthology inspired by Ecclesiastes 3.

If you love an anthology and want to add ours to your library, you may purchase your copy here!

It is available in Kindle, paperback, or hardcover!

Or you can visit my Etsy, Somebody’s Luggage to find single signature author prints by me in hardcover and paperback.

(And please consider following our anthology authors on Amazon and/or Goodreads if this is your jam.)

Living in His Wild Love

Psalm 45: 10-11

Last week at our local monthly Fellowship of Christian Writer’s meet up, Author Laurel Thomas came to speak about picking titles for different genres. This was the second time I had the pleasure to meet and hear her. She has an infectious smile and His joy pervades her words and actions, plus, she is just plain fun.

I donated a mug as a fundraiser for our writing group with this encouraging verse printed on its surface:

“My heart overflows with a pleasing them:

I address my verses to the king;

My tongue is like the pen of a ready writer”

Psalms 45:1

Laurel shared this is one of her favorite verses too, and if I remember correctly, she said it hangs in her writing room. The Message version she shared delighted us all:

“My heart bursts its banks, spilling beauty and goodness. I pour it out in a poem to the king, shaping the river into words”

The next day, I looked up the “Wedding Song” Psalm 45 and read it in the Message translation. Two verses sung to my heart during this Lenten season, its lyrics rekindling my love for Him, Psalms 45:10-11:

“Now listen, daughter, don’t miss a word:

forget your country, put your home behind you.

Be here – the king is wild for you.

Since he’s your lord, adore him.” 

He is wild for you. Just think, the Creator God who set the stars in motion and governs over all is wild for you, and we are asked to adore Him.

Everyday, don’t you want to live in His wild love? 

May you know this truth deep in your bones and may He enable you to live wholly abandoned to Him for His glory, others’ good, and your joy.

Monday Morning Washing in His Word

2 Chronicles 36

Jehoaz succeeded

Dad Josiah

Only 23

Years old

Deposed by

Egypt’s king

King Eliakim

Throne sitter

Neco renames

King Jehoiakim

Twenty-five plus

Eleven, 37

Evil in

God’s sight

King Nebuchadnezzar

Came up

Jehoicachin succeeds

Only eight

Babylon’s King

Retrieves, replaces

King Zedikiah

Over Judah

And Jerusalem

Eleven years

Of evil

God’s sight

Stiffens neck

Hardens heart

His unfaithful

House-polluters

In compassion

He calls

But mockers

Will mock

Despising Him

They scoff

Great wrath

No remedy

Chaldean king

Killed any

No compassion 

Was found

In foreign

King’s hand

All destroyed

God’s house

Burned and

Jerusalem’s wall

Broken and

All destroyed

Escapees became

Babylon bound

Becoming servants

Until appointed

Time paid

Seventy years

Of Sabbaths

Not kept

King Cyrus

Of Persia

In fulfilling

Lord’s word

Declares Him

God alone.

FROM THE SWING FICTION FEATURE FRIDAY: A Time to Heal

by Kathleen Bird

Horatious’ singular direction of feeding off the time of others has left him empty and without purpose. In this inspiring story, Kathleen Bird examines the universal struggle to find meaning and succinctly addresses this theme in an enjoyable space setting.

You can read more about Kathleen at Advent Trilogy and you can find her on Facebook and Instagram.

Ben Avery edited this diverse, edgy, eclectic, thrilling, masterful anthology inspired by Ecclesiastes 3.

If you love an anthology and want to add ours to your library, you may purchase your copy here!

It is available in Kindle, paperback, or hardcover!

Or you can visit my Etsy, Somebody’s Luggage to find single signature author prints by me in hardcover and paperback.

(And please consider following our anthology authors on Amazon and/or Goodreads if this is your jam.)

Monday Morning Washing in His Word

2 Chronicles 31

In the previous chapter, my heart was stirred by Hezekiah’s obedience to keep the Passover in Jerusalem. And though they don’t do everything perfectly, Hezekiah steps forward and receives mercy from God who heals the people.

And it makes me think that without purpose we flounder. We rush forward instead of stopping to listen to what God is asking. To wait for Him to define how we are to worship rightly. Sometimes, in our passions and exuberance we misstep. And yet, I see such mercy in these passages from a God who restores and keeps restoring.

When the Israelites see and experience God, a great joy floods them.

So much so that in today’s chapter they are moved to action.

They leave the city and go out to the cities of Judah and break places of worship which weren’t in keeping with true worship.

In verse 20, we see Hezekiah doing what is good and right and faithful before the Lord his God.

“And every work that he undertook in the service of the house of God, and in accordance with the law and commandments, to seek His God, he did with all his heart; and he prospered.”

2 Chronicles 21:21

Prayer for today:

Lord, who sees, please correct our worship and bring it into accordance with Your will for Your glory, others’ good, and our joy.

In fear of You, help us to love you with all our heart, mind, soul, body, and strength and please enlarge our love to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Be with us as we cling to Your hem. Restore us and give us clarity and passion, joy in our weakness, peace in our troubles.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

The Quickening, Overcomers Book 1 is a 2024 Selah Finalist in the Speculative Fiction Genre- Thank You, Lord!

 

For Christmas 2023, I asked my husband not to get me anything as I entered three writing contests suggested by my writer friend, Erin Greneaux.

To our amazement, his gift has yielded two golden seals and we are both so tickled and grateful.

The first is a first place from Illumination Book Awards for Mystery/Thriller genre. I am so grateful to them for this lovely honor! Gobsmacked!

The second came in today’s e-mail, a lovely golden seal from The Selah Book Award naming me as a finalist in their speculative fiction genre. Double gobsmacked!!

Tonight I had time to work on a graphic to put with my book. I can’t tell you how very blessed and thankful I feel to have this honor. Thank you to each party involved and all your hard work!

I want to thank again my beta readers, Lane, Pam Alison Bartholomew Groves, Jacob Ztnarf, Grace Overson as well as my launch team who offered suggestions, asked questions, and offered several edits. Debbie Smith did a lot and now I realize she is very gifted at this as well.

I thank my mom, Mary McReynolds, for the final edit that polished it even more.

I also thank Typewriter Creative Co. for doing brilliant work formatting and completing the artwork for the cover and interior.

I am so grateful to everyone who has read my story, left a review, or just reached out to let me know how it spoke to your heart.

May He be glorified through its message and may hearts be stirred to seek His face. Thank You, Lord.