Lynne Gentry's Blog, page 5

It’s a Birthday Bash and you’re invited

I think launching your second book is a lot like giving birth to your second child. You’re no longer naïve. You know the process will be painful, but the labor is not what scares you. It’s a feeling that nags your head. Can you can love this second incarnation of yourself as much as you loved your first? You fret, sweat, and labor. Then the day comes when your second child is pushed into the world. And to your relief, when this new life is placed in your hands, you wonder how you ever lived without it.

It is with great pleasure I give you, my faithful readers, Book #2 in The Carthage Chronicles series.

RETURN TO EXILE picks up six years after Dr. Lisbeth Hasting’s return from the ancient world of third-century Carthage. To keep from dwelling on the past she left behind, Lisbeth focuses on her future. She’s completed an infectious disease fellowship while raising her beautiful daughter. But the moment she learns what will become of Cyprian, Lisbeth decides to risk everything to save him.

I’m so excited about sharing this next leg of the adventure with you that I’m inviting you to a FACEBOOK ROMAN HOLIDAY Launch Party, Thursday, January 8, 2015, 7-8 pm CST. It’s only an hour long, but it will be so fun, you don’t want to miss it.  Slip into your comfortable robe, pour a cup of coffee, and JOIN the party at Author Lynne Gentry .

 PARTY details:
 PARTY prizes:

 

Watch this video and you’ll rock the Roman Trivia Games:

 Sign up today. Mark Jan. 8, 7-8 pm on your calendar. Invite your friends. Snap toga photos this holiday. Then join Carthage Chronicles fans for a Roman style celebration.
If you can’t wait to get your hands on RETURN TO EXILE, you can pre-order today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Legacy of Love Transcends Time

In preparation for the arrival of my daughter’s first child, my husband crawled around in the attic to retrieve her rocking chair. My mother gave this chair to my daughter on her first Christmas. Mom made a cute little pad for the seat. I couldn’t wait to pass the chair on to the next generation.

The chair was covered in dust, the seat cushion had rotted, and there were tiny teeth marks here and there. But the imperfections were not what I saw when my husband sat the chair before me. I saw my mother at her sewing machine working far into the night to make a little cushion that would fit the little seat perfectly. I saw my mother’s face as she presented her gift of love. And I saw my mother’s joy as she watched her granddaughter climb aboard and rock her baby doll to sleep.

When I undid the ties to wash the cushion, they fell apart in my hands. I cried at the loss. The woman who’d made this cushion has been dead for seven years. I would have to make the new cushion in my mother’s place. So, I carefully undid the stitching and used my mother’s work as a pattern for the new seat. And in that process, I felt my mother’s love transcend time.

My mom at the wedding of one of her grandchildren.

That’s how legacies work. The ones who go before us leave a pattern we can follow.

My mother’s life is a pattern I use for my own. She left an admirable legacy of faith and courage.

In my book series, The Carthage Chronicles, legacy is on the line.

Who would have thought it possible that a scruffy band of misfits could muster the courage required to leave a legacy of faith, but the Christians in the third century did just that. When they joined hands and faced down plague and persecution, they changed the world.

It’s with great joy I offer you the second installment of their epic tale. May this story encourage you to consider the legacy you are leaving behind.

January 6 RETURN TO EXILE releases. You can pre-order your copy now wherever good books are sold.

In celebration of this release, I’m hosting a FACEBOOK Roman Holiday Spa Launch party. There will be prizes, games, and lots of Roman trivia fun. Click here to join the party.

 

 

 

Tell me about someone who left a legacy in your life.

Where Plants Come to Die

I love nature. My imagination goes wild when I am surrounded by beautiful gardens, vibrant flowers, or cool, wooded paths. I admire anyone with a green thumb. Every spring, I’m determined that this year’s adventure in making our yard a beautiful oasis is going to turn out better than my last attempt. But when I stick a plant in dirt I know its days are numbered. I have a potted plant graveyard behind the garage as proof. It is with great shame that I share photos of my latest plant murders.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even my Christmas tree is already crunchy.

 

Quite by accident, I have discovered a type of gardening that works for me.

Rock gardens. These three rocks are the first in my collection. They’re not just any rocks. These rocks are very important to me. They are heavy with great historical significance and I love history. I retrieved them from the crumbling remains of the cabin where my husband’s great, great grandmother was scalped.

The cabin before it fell into ruins.

I risked life and limb (much like some of my fearless characters do in my stories) climbing over barbed wire fences and trudging through snake-infested grass just to retrieve them.

I’m willing to risk life and limb to dig up historical details. In my upcoming release, RETURN TO EXILE, I was shocked to learn that one of the dangers of an epidemic is the arrival of a new threat. Once the herd’s immunity is reduced, a new virus or bacteria can swoop in. I can’t wait for readers to jump in as the adventure continues on 1.6.15.

If you haven’t read HEALER OF CARTHAGE, get it for Christmas. And pre-order RETURN TO EXILE to be delivered after January 6.

 

What would you risk your life to save?

Cyber Monday Giveaway

One of my biggest joys as an author is getting to have sneak-peek reading opportunities of some of my writing friends. In honor of of Cyber Monday I’m giving away two of the books I had the opportunity to read for endorsement or influencing. All you have to do is make sure you’re signed up for my newsletter at JOIN THE ADVENTURE ON THE FRONT PAGE OF MY WEBSITE. I’ll be choosing a winner tomorrow. And I might even toss in a FREE copy of my new eshort, SHADES OF SURRENDER. Happy shopping.

PROMISE TO CHERISH by Elizabeth Younts:

As World War II draws to a close, nurse Christine falls in love with roguish Amish boy Eli and must choose between a new, uncertain life in the Amish faith or face the judgment of a conservative postwar American society for her past mistakes.

It’s 1945, and Christine Freeman is a nurse at Hudson River State Hospital, where she works alongside members of a Civilian Public Service unit. Eli is one of the conscies—conscientious objectors to the war—and he is doing his best to become a man of character instead of the immature heartbreaker he used to be back home in his Amish community.

Christine and Eli are friendly, but when an old acquaintance, Jack, returns home from the war, Christine’s world is violently turned upside down. Eli, heartbroken to see his friend so hurt, offers her an escape within his Amish community. Despite her misgivings, Christine is fully embraced by Eli’s community. She slowly begins to feel valued and loved as she learns the Amish way of life.

Christine finds herself falling for Eli. But soon, the abusive Jack discovers Christine in her Amish hideaway and starts causing trouble for the quiet community. Christine can’t see herself becoming Amish, and she knows that if Eli leaves the church to be with her, he will be shunned. Will she escape Jack and possibly have to give up the one thing she holds most dear, or will she follow her heart and promise to cherish the Amish man who loves her?

 

THE HATMAKER’S HEART by Carla Stewart:

For Nell Marchwold, bliss is seeing the transformation when someone gets a glimpse in the mirror while wearing one of her creations and feels beautiful. Nell has always strived to create hats that bring out a woman’s best qualities. She knows she’s fortunate to have landed a job as an apprentice designer at the prominent Oscar Fields Millinery in New York City. Yet when Nell’s fresh designs begin to catch on, her boss holds her back from the limelight, claiming the stutter she’s had since childhood reflects poorly on her and his salon.

But it seems Nell’s gift won’t be hidden by Oscar’s efforts. Soon an up-and-coming fashion designer is seeking her out as a partner of his 1922 collection. The publicity leads to an opportunity for Nell to make hats in London for a royal wedding. There, she sees her childhood friend, Quentin, and an unexpected spark kindles between them. But thanks to her success, Oscar is determined to keep her. As her heart tugs in two directions, Nell must decide what she is willing to sacrifice for her dream, and what her dream truly is.

Shades of Surrender

Ruth and Caecilianus are two of my favorite characters in THE CARTHAGE CHRONICLES series. Many of you also enjoyed them, but you have asked: How did the old bishop end up with such a beautiful, young wife? Well, today is your lucky day. Shades of Surrender, the eshort prequel to RETURN TO EXILE, is their story and it releases today! In the third century, arranged marriages often paired a beautiful young woman with an established older man. According to the historical records of our series hero, Cyprianus Thascius, he was converted by an old bishop named Caecilianus. When Caecilianus died he left his wife and children in Cyprian’s care. From this one little piece of information, I created a life for Caecilianus and Ruth. I hope you enjoy getting to know them as much as I did. Download your digital copy today for only 99 cents.

Keep an eye out. RETURN TO EXILE releases 1.6.15.

Shades of Surrender: 

The unexpected death of Ruth’s father has left her with a mountain of debt and the unfinished tapestry of Carthage’s most important nobleman. If she cannot complete the order, she will lose the rug shop. Knowing her frail mother would never survive a life on the streets, Ruth has reluctantly accepted charity from an old family friend. When he offers marriage after tragedy strikes, the only way to know if it is an offer of love or charity is to first repay her debt.

But some debts can never be repaid … they can only be surrendered.

Short Lady, Tall Adventures

My good friend, missionary and writer, LISA HARRIS and I established THE ECHO PROJECT to bring a bit of relief and awareness to the plight of the forgotten in Africa. This year, an amazing young girl named Amber is giving NINE months of her life to intern with the Harris family. I had to share her latest post with you.

“I know there is hope for mankind because there is a fire in my chest. I feel the pain of others and I care. I care.” -Anita Krizzan

Africa has the talent of wrecking me in the most heart-changing way possible. I used to joke along with the rest of America telling others to finish their food because “children dying in Africa would be happy to eat it for them,” but now that I am in front of that reality, it’s really not that funny. I have stepped into a world where I have so much and those around me have so little. I am in a place where nothing is easy, people are tough, and pain is prevalent. And my goodness has it humbled me. I sure hope it continues to.

My eyes were opened even more widely to this reality this past week when I spent three days camping out in the village of Matinbine about an hour away. The women cooked over a fire. We ate cassava from the ground, mangos from the trees, and lots of beans and rice. They even provided for me a bath, which was a large bowl of water I was able to rinse myself off with. We drove about a 20 minutes to the river where they get water. (Which, side note, unfortunately this water is not very clean. Thankfully, The Echo Project is beginning to build a well there!!) But the people of the village don’t drive there. They walk. And then carry buckets of water on their heads and walk all that way back to their homes. Let me remind you, water is heavy. They work hard, very hard, simply to make sure their children have food to eat each day.

The whole weekend was an amazing experience filled with donkey rides, prayer, and lots of praising and dancing next to the fire. I felt wild and alive, but I was happy to come home and take a hot shower.

But the thing is, the people at that village do not get such a luxury. They do not have the privilege of hot water that magically comes out from the wall at any time of the day. The do not get the privilege of ordering pizza because they are too tired to cook. They don’t get Netflix, or a car, or the convenience of popping some ibuprofen for a headache…

What I am trying to say is, the more I take myself deeper into the suffering of Africa, the more content I have become, the more compassionate I have become….and the more angry I have become.

Because here’s the thing about compassion: it hurts. At first it simply took my heart to an uncomfortable place. But soon I find myself with a need to return to that place, again and again, until it was not longer uncomfortable, but rather painful. It hurts to see others hurting. Then it became upsetting. I became so angry at the rest of the world who does not seem to care at all about their fellow suffering brothers and sisters. And I wished they would at least TRY to understand, and at least try to care, and try to do something. But apparently it’s too much for them to look into the direction of pain. I wanted to scream into everyone’s faces and throw them into the suffering places of the world until they stop their complaining and stop living for such frivolousness, until they realize they have freaking EVERYTHING. (No, I don’t want anyone to feel ashamed for living in a blessed country, for God never once called us to shame, but He does call us to thankfulness. So please, be thankful.) Lastly, I became disgusted at myself, my provincial view, my selfishness, my piles of stuff, my diets, my first world problems, and my so-called needs.

I didn’t know what to do.

I asked God why life was so unfair. I told Him how angry it made me feel; He told me it made Him angry too. I vented to a friend. He told me that when he talks to God about all the pain in the world, God tells him, “That’s why I made you.” I agree.

“The Lord said, ‘I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them…And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you [Moses] to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.” Exodus 3:7-10

You see my sweet friends, what was revealed to me is that the story does not have to end in darkness. If we mourn over a broken world, just think how much a God who sent His son to die for that same world mourns all the more. Hope is not lost. The beautiful thing is, God has called each one of us into the Project of Hope. Jesus sees the suffering, the oppression, and the pain, and has called YOU to bring His love, healing, and freedom to a hating, hurting, and lost world. Don’t you feel honored? You don’t have to move to a third world country to be a part of this project. Anyone without Jesus is living in spiritual poverty. You have SO much and SO much to give.

So go give it!

Spread some sunshine.

Let contentment fuel your compassion.

Let your compassion fuel you to keep changing the world.

You are not alone in this fight for Hope. God will lead you, guide you, and encourage you.

He is with you.

You’re pretty much amazing; don’t give up.

Xoxo

Amber.

FIND OUT HOW YOU CAN HELP AT:

www.theECHOproject.org

Failure is not fatal

 

Has failure paralyzed you? For far too long I have let fear of failure keep me stuck in one place. Challenging myself to cast off fear. Hope you’ll join me and DR. LISBETH HASTINS in OUR quest to live courageously.

COMING 1.6.15

 

RETURN TO EXILE available for PREORDER now.

Life is One Big Adventure

Joel Malm

Readers, I can’t wait for you to meet my friend and fellow adventure lover, Joel Malm. We met at a writers’ conference. Neither one of us had any idea of the plans God had for us. Joel will inspire you as much as he did me that day. Take it away, Joel.

***

“Send me something about adventure for my blog,” said Lynne.

Hmm. Adventure? Like as in climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, exploring the Great Pyramids at Giza or taking a dugout canoe through the Venezuelan jungle to Angel Falls? Those are all adventures I’ve had. But something tells me Lynne wants more than just a neat story.

I started thinking back to the first time I met Lynne. I had just been fired. I took a Sunday off and the pastor offered my job as worship leader to someone else. Worst part was, that pastor was a longtime friend of mine and he never even told me he wanted to get rid of me. Ouch!

We got frantic. To stay afloat financially we had to move out of our dream home that we had just moved into six months earlier. The next year was an insane adventure.

But it wasn’t the kind I like.

You see there are two kinds of adventures: The kind you sign up for and the ones that you get sucked into. I signed up to climb Kilimanjaro. I knew there would be suffering and agony involved. I didn’t sign up to get fired.

I’m convinced that lots of people miss out on some great things because they don’t see life for what it is – an adventure. Adventures are full of twists and turns, newness and discomfort. They involve some pain and suffering. Lots of people don’t realize that they are called to be an adventurer.

I took a team on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. I told them they didn’t need snow gear. It doesn’t snow in June. On the hardest day of the hike we got caught in a blizzard. Ice pounded down on us for hours. We weren’t’ prepared. It was miserable.

The team hated me at the time. But once it was over you can’t imagine the stories we all had of our personal struggles. We all felt a little bit more awesome because we survived it. I’ve done the Inca Trail several times, but the pain and suffering in that trip made it the most epic adventure to date.

If you really want to get all you can out of life you’ve got to look at it as an adventure. And adventures are uncomfortable. They are painful. Sometimes there’s hurt and betrayal. Sometimes you get soaked and cold. But if you’ll see it all as an adventure then you’ll realize that God, your guide, will bring you out on the other side and you’ll have some amazing stories to tell.

Right after I got fired I sat down and wrote a book that I had been trying to write for years. But this time it actually came out the way I wanted. That book, Vision Map: Charting a Step-by-Step Course for Your Biggest Hopes and Dreams is now available on Moody Press. If you are looking for an adventure or even if you just got sucked into one I think you’ll find the book helpful. Pick up a copy today. I’d love to hear what you think once you’ve read it!

 

Vision Map by Joël Malm

There is a gap between where we are and where we see ourselves in our biggest dreams. This gap can seem insurmountable, overwhelming,and even impossible. But here’s the thing: God often gives us a unique message to share or a difficult problem to solve, and we just need a simple push in the right direction. Vision Map will help you take practical steps to see your vision come to pass based on a simple goal-writing plan.

joelmalm.com

helpmestartsomething.org

summitleaders.com

Tell us some of your adventures … the ones you signed up for or got sucked into.

SHADES OF SURRENDER

One of my favorite parts of writing is researching. I love digging through books and websites. When I discover an obscure fact I can’t wait to share it with you, my readers. While writing the eshort prequel, SHADES OF SURRENDER, I needed information on Caecilianus’s business of making purple. I came across a fascinating blog by a man who lives only eight miles from the ruins of Carthage in Tunisia, Africa. We have corresponded for the last few months and he’s graciously answered my questions. Mohammed is a marketing executive whose passion is recreating the ancient art of making purple.

In preparation for the release of the eshort prequel, SHADES OF SURRENDER I’m excited to share with you a snippet of his vast wealth of knowledge on the long-forgotten art of creating purple.

Take it away, Mohammed:

One of its biggest sources of income in ancient Carthage was the staggeringly expensive purple dye (the color of royalty in antiquity). This 4000 years old pigment; most probably  discovered by the Phoenicians of Sidon; was extracted from marine mollusks called Murex which were (still are in some areas) very abundant along Carthage coasts and it was worth 15 times its weight in gold. This industry brought so much wealth to Carthage and its colonies that the Carthaginians and the Phoenicians in general  tried by all means to keep the dye process secret and as far away as possible from prying eyes.  

My personal story with the Phoenician purple dye started  in history class back in 1994 when I was 14 and for some reason this legendary color haunted me ever since. For more than 13 years I kept trying to imagine how these colors would look like in reality and this idea obsessed me until I came across a dead Trunculus snail along the coast of Carthage in 2007. The snail was seemingly not dead for a long time and it just started to release its internal fluids, upon exposure to the sun it turned into a magnificent deep red purple.  

Exposed Trunculus Gland

 

I made this discovery on a remote coast near Magon quarter (an extension of Carthage built in the 5th century BC) where the once massive southern sea gate of Carthage stood, the vivacious purple color oozing from the Murex shell and this idyllic location revived my 14 year old passion and I decided to start working on the rediscovery of this mysterious dye ever since.  

After a lot of research and many sleepless nights, I have successfully extracted the purple pigment which was very impure during the first test but I managed to clean it and make it good for dyeing in the following experiments. There are a lot of complex steps to follow and the process is painstakingly slow but the outcome is worth the efforts. Please note that I only process the glands and extract the pigment, the dyeing tests illustrated in the attached photos have been made by some of my friends in the UK and New Zealand who are specialists in natural dyes and textile but of course I provided them with the dye stuff for this purpose so as discussed previously I can show you how the pigment is extracted but I have made very few dyeing experiments myself.  

Below you can find the steps of the pigment extraction and dyeing process:  

Pigment extraction:  

My method may have some steps in common with the ancient Phoenician process but I have added my own touch for convenience purposes:  

The Murex snails are carefully selected (fat and juicy) and about 40 kg are required to produce a few grams of impure pigment.
The shells are cleaned from the mud and sand that covers them.
With a hammer the shell is crushed in a specific location (near the head of the snail), actually a hole is drilled in order to expose the hypo-branchial gland which contains the purple precursor.
The glands are carefully cut (they should not be damaged) and are left exposed on sheet of glass.
At the contact with air, the purple precursor starts to oxidize and in the course of 40 minutes it turns from colorless to yellow, green, blue then purple. For some snails the transformation stops at the blue stage and no purple ever appears. This depends on the chemical composition of the precursor and its concentration in Bromine.
Once the oxidation is finished, I scrape the viscous purple pigment with a sharp blade and put it aside.
Once done the pigment is left to dry in a dark room for 3 days then finely ground and stored.

Blue Trunculus pigment

Tell me what hobby has become your passion.

 Shades of Surrender goes on sale 11.16.14 for only 99 cents.  Discover the story of Ruth and Caecilianus falling in love. And then be ready for the January 6 release of RETURN TO EXILE.

When Past & Future Collide

I’ve worked behind the scenes for years, preparing actors and speakers for the limelight, directing and cheering on from the shadows.

Lynne speaking at Journeys Event; Highland Church, Memphis, TN 2014

 

This past weekend I keynoted at a wonderful women’s conference in Memphis. Every detail had been carefully attended to by the talented planning team at Highland Church. Everyone was ready … everyone but me. Fear churned in my belly. It had been quite a few years since I’d stepped into the spotlight. Could I remember all that I had prepared? What if I froze and started saying ummmmm? And most frightening of all … was what I had to say even worthy of sharing?

All of those fears went away the moment my foot hit the stage.

Not because of anything I had done but because of all God has done in me.

When I think back over my life JOURNEY, I can’t help but see the faithfulness of God, his ever present presence in my life. How could I not want to share the mercy and grace he bestowed upon me with readers?

Next week, I have the privilege of sharing my life journey and writing journey with several hundred students, faculty, and church leaders at ACU’s Summit conference in Abilene, TX. 

 

ACU Summit 2014

I can’t wait to show others how God uses every detail of our past to fulfill the future he has planned for us. How has God used your journey to change the world?