Davalynn Spencer's Blog, page 30
December 9, 2019
Multi-Author Christmas Scavenger Hunt!
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Welcome! This week I’m part of a multi-author Christmas scavenger hunt and I’d love it if you’d join us in the fun.
At each author’s blog, you will find a question that can be answered by checking out the free preview for their book on Amazon. Each blog will also direct you to the next blog in line. Answer each question by using this Google form. Be sure to answer every author’s question to be entered for a chance to win our fabulous Grand Prize.
At the end of my post is a link to the next author’s blog, so keep reading. If I’m the first author you happen to see, no worries. The Google form gives you links to all twenty-seven authors.
In my Christmas novella set, A High Country Christmas: Romance Collection, two novellas are found under one cover: my brand new Just in Time for Christmas and last year’s Snow Angel. Each is a historical stand-alone story about those looking for love in the high-country parks and peaks of Colorado. Cowboys, anyone?
In Just in Time for Christmas, Abigale Millerton’s grandfather dies while she’s away at a Denver girls’ school. Alone now for the second time in her young life, she leaves school and returns to her adoptive grandparents’ ranch in the Catamounts near Divide. At seventeen, she’s faced with a floundering ranch, a timber thief pinching her lodgepole pine, and a cowboy intent on stealing her heart.
And locals don’t call the area the Catamounts for nothing. Catamount is another word for mountain lion.
Now for your entry in my part of the scavenger hunt: Go to A High-Country Christmas: Romance Collection on Amazon at this link. What is the phenomenon that Abigale mentions, saying it needs “precise conditions” before it can happen? Find the answer by looking in the free “look inside” feature, then fill out this Google form and head on to the next blog!
Thank you so much for visiting. The next author on the tour is Sarah Hamaker, who will tell you about her Christmas book Mistletoe & Murder. You can find her blog at this link. Remember – the round-robin will end on December 16th at 11:59 PM EST.
Have a blessed Merry Christmas, and may all that you read be uplifting!
~
multi-author #Christmas scavenger hunt
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Maegan Morin – you are the randomly selected winner of last week’s “Make A Joyful Noise” book giveaway. Congrautlations! I will be in touch.
Inspirational Western Romance – where the hero is heroic.
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December 2, 2019
Make A Joyful Noise – and enter for a giveaway!
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
I’m a Christmas-carol fan.
The music takes me back to my childhood and all those candlelight Christmas Eve services we attended.
From there I went on to high school choir and church choir and – okay, I admit it – I know all the verses to several of these seasonal songs.
Melodically, my favorite is “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” Perhaps it is “captive Israel” I’ve always heard mourning in the distinctly Jewish flavor that breaks into hopeful promise on the chorus with “Rejoice!” That one word of the 1854 Plainsong melody adapted by Thomas Helmore could have split the night sky above Bethlehem’s shepherds.
Lyrically, I like “Joy to the World.” The words of 18th-century hymn writer Isaac Watts so aptly convey that joy, and are mirrored in the lively tune by New Englander Lowell Mason, inspired by two passages from George Frederick Handel’s Messiah.
Do you have a favorite Christmas carol? If so, share it below, and I’ll toss your name in the mix for a random drawing this week. The winner will receive a free e-book of my recently released Christmas-novella set, A High-Country Christmas.
Merry musical Christmas to you all!
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord!
Psalm 98:4
~
Make a joyful noise!
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The next newsletter goes out tomorrow, Dec. 3. Don’t miss it!
~
Find a cowboy for Christmas in this heartwarming holiday collection.
Inspirational Western Romance – where the hero is heroic.
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November 25, 2019
Gratitude
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
I have a time machine in my home. When I run my fingers over the smooth wooden doors, I’m transported to the turn of the century. Not this century, but 1900.
It’s a primitive piece, one of three hutches that belonged to my grandmother. Simplistic in design and function, it is a piece for which some people would pay a good deal of money, but I received it as an afterthought, a token given to the youngest grandchild of a woman old enough to be her great grandmother.
When Grandma departed without any of her worldly possessions, the generation previous to mine doled them out. I got the leftovers, the sturdy ugly duckling, forgotten behind the parlor door.
But really, I got the prize.
Each of Grandma’s three hutches represented a segment of her life’s journey. The most modern was a curved-glass china cabinet filled with curios and photographs and fancy dishes she rarely used. The middle-age hutch boasted intricate gingerbread curlicues and special compartments. But the hutch hidden behind the parlor door to the kitchen had been built by my carpenter grandfather for his old-maid bride.
Grandma laughed when she told me about that moniker. She’d been determined not to marry until her eighteenth birthday, and she stuck to her guns.
I like to think I have a little of her tenacity.
After helping fight fires spawned by the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, my grandfather went south with his bride and bought farmland in the San Joaquin Valley. Their first home had three walls with blankets enclosing the fourth side, according to stories my father told. I never questioned those stories. Just listened, amazed that people lived that way so recently in American history.
But poverty constrains many to be creative, so the Benjamin Chamberlain family made do with what they had.
The cabin was eventually replaced with a clapboard house, then replaced again when sons built a nicer home for their parents. The third house is the one I remember from my early childhood, where I walked barefoot in uncut grass cooled by sentinel shade trees. Violets grew freely in the grass, perfuming the air as I played.
Years later I realized the truth of the oft-quoted phrase: Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it.
Perhaps that was why Grandma’s grass was uncut.
My children never saw that home and its fragrant violets, but they grew up with the old hutch. Someday they may sell it and take the money instead of the memories.
But for now, I look at it and see my grandfather’s lack of wealth and abundance of love. I see the hope that drove him from destruction in San Francisco to a fresh start in the fertile central valley. I see the piece of forgotten furniture that my grandmother never got rid of even though she eventually had nicer things to replace it.
And I am grateful for the heritage, hardship, and hope that led to me and where I am today.
I have only one thing in this life that I have not been given by someone else – my attitude. Today – and most days, I pray – I choose gratitude.
~
Give thanks to the Lord
for He is good.
For His mercy endures forever.
Psalm 136:1 NKJV
I have only one thing in this life that I have not been given.
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Grateful to be on her way, Etta watched familiar countryside rush past the window. Anxiety vied with that gratitude—anxiety over the unknown into which she hurtled with each repetitious clack of wheels on the rail. She was leaving behind all she had ever known, heading for what she’d never imagined. Still couldn’t imagine. Had this been a foolish decision? ~Mail-Order Misfire
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November 18, 2019
Author Susan G. Mathis Addresses Workplace Abuse
In her new Christmas novella, Sara’s Surprise, part of the historical Thousand Islands series, author Susan G. Mathis looks at a modern issue that is not at all modern. It’s been around for a long time.
Abused by your Boss?
By Susan G. Mathis
A Canadian survey found that over seventy per cent of abusers are bosses. Such abusive behavior can have serious psychological and physical effects on individuals. I know. I’ve been there. And my protagonist, Sara, in my newest novella, Sara’s Surprise, does too.
Workplace abuse is a pattern of behaviors that are meant to intimidate, offend, exclude and humiliate a person. It might be displayed by verbal abuse, gossip, malicious rumors, offensive behavior, mistreatment and even sabotage. So is making offensive jokes and gestures.
Victims of abuse may experience stress, anxiety, depression, disrupted sleep and changes in appetite. Workplace stress can literally make people sick, and chronic stress is a known contributor to chronic disease.
So if you face such difficulties, what do you do?
Pray
Praying gives you the inner strength to stand up for yourself without losing your cool or your dignity. When abusers realize you have the strength and courage to not play their game, they’ll usually back down. Psalms 18:3 says, “I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy, to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.”
Report
Talk to someone you trust and use Matthew 18 as your guide. Report the actions to your human resources department, your supervisor, or your boss’s boss if your boss is the abuser.
Be strong but kind
God judges and disciplines, and He’s called us to serve even our enemies. Romans 12:20 says, “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” Show the abuser God’s love, but don’t allow the abuse to continue.
Trust God
Even if you’ve gone through an abusive situation, God can redeem your life, heal you, and get glory from your pain. He did it with me, and He can do it with you!
~
Susan G Mathis is a multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate New York. Katelyn’s Choice, the first in The Thousand Islands Gilded Age series, is available now, and book two, Devyn’s Dilemma, releases in April, 2020. The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, and Sara’s Surprise are available now. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com for more.
Susan is also a published author of two premarital books with her husband, Dale, two children’s picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Colorado Springs, enjoys traveling globally with her wonderful husband, Dale, and relishes each time she gets to see or Skype with her four granddaughters.
Sara O’Neill works as an assistant pastry chef at the magnificent Thousand Islands Crossmon Hotel where she meets precocious, lovable, seven-year-old Madison and her charming father and hotel manager, Sean Graham. But Jacque LaFleur, the pastry chef Sara works under, makes her dream job a nightmare.
Sean Graham has trouble keeping his mind off Sara and his daughter Madison out of mischief. Though he finds Sara captivating, he despises LaFleur and misreads Sara’s desire to learn from the pastry chef as affection. Can Sean learn to trust Sara and can she trust herself to be an instant mother?
Connect with Susan:
Website: www.SusanGMathis.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SusanGMathis
Twitter: https://twitter.com/@SusanGMathis
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/susangmathis
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/susangmathisaut
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6044608.Susan_G_Mathis
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November 11, 2019
Veteran Dreams
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
When I taught sixth-grade world history, I grew accustomed to adolescent boys who dreamed of becoming soldiers and warriors like the ancient kings they studied.
Later, when I taught English composition at the college, several of my students were young marines who bore unseen scars of battles less glamorous than those portrayed in middle-school history books.
Honed and hardened by superior officers and surreal experiences, they sat politely in plastic chairs and let me tell them how to write cohesive paragraphs for persuasive essays.
Most of those young men had grown up faster than they wanted. They’d fought to right the wrongs of others and, like their fathers, prevent the encroachment of tyrants who would rule the world at any cost.
I’ve always been proud of these boys-turned-men who listened to me drill the rules of punctuation. They were gentlemen, every one, hiding behind their attentive eyes what they’d seen in places I’d only heard of.
Often, their dreams leaked from their fingers, nightmares on the page, giving me a glimpse of the horrors, reminding me that veterans are not only the men and women of my parents’ generation or my own.
Now those veterans are my children, and they will someday be my grandchildren, fighting to protect those who cannot defend themselves.
May their dreams be restful, their battles quickly ended, their valor rewarded by peace.
God bless them every one.
There is no greater love than
to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
John 15:13 NLT
~
God bless them every one.
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*Image: “We took 32 hits but the Lord spared us. We did a mayday hard landing back at Khe Sanh [Vietnam].” J Pat Branch, April 1971, in 48th AHC, B model Huey gunship north of Dong Ha. Photo courtesy J Pat Branch.
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November 4, 2019
You Are of More Value
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
What was that hanging from my bird feeder – a bat?
I looked again. Sparrows swarmed the feeder and the ground beneath it, scrabbling for seeds and corn in the snow.
The dangling creature flapped its wings and tried to upright itself. A bird. A tiny sparrow.
Again it fell and hung by one foot snared in the feeder’s decorative edging. I’d never seen such a thing.
Pulling on my snow boots and gloves, I briefly regretted the disturbance my presence would cause the other birds, particularly the covey of quail huddled nearby beneath a sheltering spruce. But I could not let the single bird hang there until it froze to death or was snagged by a hawk.
As I approached, the birds scattered in a rush of wings. Only the captive remained, flailing, chirping, I supposed, in panic. A female, gray and plain, missing the bold markings of the more colorful males. Her little eyes watched me as she cried, but she was no match for my gloved fingers that cupped her wings close to her body.
The bones of her foot were thinner than the smallest twig. I reached beneath the rim of the feeder, hoping to dislodge her foot from the other side without snapping it or her leg in two.
It worked.
Once clear of the ornate prison, I opened the hand that held her, and she flew away to feed again.
I’d done something right.
I thought of the shepherd who left a flock of ninety-nine sheep to rescue the one that was missing.
Though the metaphor clashed with Jesus’ words about our value compared to sparrows, both stories spoke to how much He loves us. How He has gone out of His way to show us that love and to rescue us.
Inside, I pulled off my boots and stood at the window watching the sparrows return to their feeding ground, seemingly unconcerned that one of their own had been at risk and rescued. Unaware of the delight I take in watching them and feeding them.
May we never forget how precious we are to the One who watches over us and provides for our every need. For He has told us, “You are of more value than many sparrows.”
~
Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?
And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will ….
Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
Matthew 10:31 NKJ
You are of more value.
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Abigale stopped in front of the trees, the ache of missing her adoptive grandparents nearly bending her in half. They had truly rescued her, saved her from an orphanage or worse when they’d brought her to their ranch. Dim memories of her parents hung like a thin curtain at the back of her mind, but she’d long ago lost their faces. All that remained was a vague sense of safety that had been suddenly and swiftly torn away. ~Just in Time for Christmas
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October 28, 2019
My Name is Written There
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
A child’s perspective can open our eyes to things we’ve long forgotten about as adults.
Like the vintage carnival-prize horse that belonged to my husband’s mother. Her great-granddaughter discovered that prize several months ago and let me know that she placed high value upon it. She picked it up and turned it over and around and even hugged it to her little chest in adoration.
One day when she was visiting, she went predictably to the statue and picked it up, surprised by the piece of paper taped to its copper belly.
“That’s your name on there,” I said when she looked to me for explanation. “Someday, that horse will be yours.”
Again, she hugged it endearingly.
Each visit since, she checks to see if the tape is still there. “My name is on it,” she says. “And tape.”
She’s reminding me of her future ownership as well as reassuring herself that I won’t forget.
Though she doesn’t know it, this six-year-old is also reminding me of God’s unfailing love for us as His children.
The Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, encouraged the people by saying, “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I [God] will not forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isaiah 49:15,16).
In the New Testament, Jesus told his disciples upon their return from seeing evil succumb to God’s power, don’t rejoice that the spirits submit to you, rejoice that your names are written in heaven (Luke 10:20).
Written in heaven. I like the sound of that. There is great comfort in knowing that my name is written there.
~
My name is written there
Abigale picked up the cross-stitched pillow, heavy with memories. A small brown stain marred one corner, no doubt blood from where she’d hit her head. Tears stung the backs of her eyes, making it hard to read the words. She knew them by heart, but reading them and fingering the tiny stitches reminded her that Mams’s faith had grown over time, just like the painstaking handiwork. ~Just in Time for Christmas (Available now for pre-order!)
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October 21, 2019
All God’s Creatures
It’s not uncommon for people to find spiritual insight through the behavior of their pets or other animals. I’ve experienced plenty of times when my eyes were opened by my old dog, Blue, or one of our other critters, including my husband’s clown mule, Ike. I’ve even written about some of those occasions in this blog.
So when I was invited to write devotionals for Guideposts’ 2020 yearly devotional book for animal lovers, All God’s Creatures, I jumped at the opportunity. Friend and fellow author, Amelia Rhodes, also has contributions in this collection. Check out her other books here.
Has there been a time in your life when you sensed a message from God through a pet or other animal? Tell us about it by commenting below.
Then think Christmas, my friends. What a perfect gift for the animal lovers in your life. Get your copy from Guideposts by going directly to the site here.
~
You care for people and animals alike, O Lord.
How precious is your unfailing love, O God!
Psalm 36:6,7
~
Give to the animal lovers in your life.
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Congratulations, Barbara Franks. You are the randomly chosen giveaway winner from last week’s guest post by Janet Chester Bly.
Animals are one of God’s gifts to humans. They bless us with comfort when we are down, fill us with joy at just the right moment, and encourage us on our daily walk.
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October 14, 2019
The Spiritual Side of Creating a Novel – and a giveaway
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Years ago when I dreamed of being an author, I wrote to a husband-and-wife team of authors who impressed me with their creativity and love for the Lord.
They wrote back.
Not only was I surprised, I was blessed and encouraged.
Today I am honored to host one of those two authors, Janet Chester Bly. She shares her secrets for success that apply not only to authors but to anyone seeking to glorify the Lord in what they do.
Thank you for joining me today. Be sure to check out Janet’s giveaway at the end of the post.
From author Janet Chester Bly …
For the Christian fiction writer, the whole project involves a walk with God. He provides the idea, enables the writing gift, and empowers the ability to do the project.
1) Pray.
Daily talk through with Him the development of crafting the story and scenes. Pray for God’s will to be done in and through your story, that reader’s hearts will be prepared in some way to receive divine truth. And when it’s done, pray for wisdom in creative promotion.
2) Wrestle.
Agonize through the spiritual theme. In my recently released novel series, The Trails of Reba Cahill, the characters thoughts and actions and the evolving story, little by little revealed recurring issues. I either experienced them or lived it through them. On the negative side: deceit, lies, and bitterness. On the positive end: confession, truth, and forgiveness. Staying with that thread throughout helped me find where to begin, what defined the middle, and how to reach the conclusion.
3) Be willing to wait.
Your books may take months. Or years. Creating takes time with a multitude of starts and stops, to really know the crux of your story.
4.) Recognize your team.
Sure, the main discipline of the sweat and strain of the actual writing may be up to you. But you don’t really do it alone. Others will come alongside in various ways, with advice and inspiration, resources and research. Be thankful for each input. Call them out in some way—in the book’s acknowledgements or token gifts.
A sample writer’s prayer: “Heavenly Father, make this a story created by you. Bring it to life for your purpose. Work through my mind. Challenge my heart. Give voice to the characters to reveal something you want to say to each reader. Through the privilege of this project, minister to me , through me, and in spite of me. Keep me going toward the goal, as life happens. Bring your glory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.”
~
Leave a comment and be entered in a drawing for a free giveaway paperback (USA only) or PDF copy of Janet’s newly released novel, Beneath A Camperdown Elm, Book 3, Trails of Reba Cahill. Answer one of the two following questions:
Question for Writer: How do you make sure you keep God as part of your work? Question for Reader: What was the spiritual message of the last novel you read?
The whole project involves a walk with God
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Reba has everything she ever wanted! Her scary stalker is in jail. She’s engaged to a rancher-in-training. Her runaway mother returns home. But then, Grandma Pearl disappears! Is she about to lose it all?
Three generations of women travel separate journeys of the heart, while a mystery brews under an old Scottish Elm.
Janet Chester Bly is a city girl with a country heart. She doesn’t corral horses or even mow her own lawn. “I’m no womba woman,” she says. But she followed her late husband, award-winning western author Stephen Bly, to the Idaho mountain top village of Winchester to write books and minister to a small church. When she lost him, she stayed. She manages the online Bly Books bookstore, https://www.BlyBooks.com, rakes lots of Ponderosa pine needles and cones, and survives the long winter snows, one blizzard at a time.
Janet and her three sons—Russell, Michael and Aaron–completed her late husband’s last novel, Stuart Brannon’s Final Shot, Book 7, Stuart Brannon Series, a Selah Award Finalist. The family project process can be found on her website blog under the series topic, “Finishing Dad’s Novel”: http://www.BlyBooks.com/blog/.
Contact Janet online:
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/BlyBooks/
Facebook Personal: https://www.facebook.com/janetchesterbly/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janetchesterbly/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BlyBooks
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/janetcbly/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/269265.Janet_Chester_Bly
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetchesterbly
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October 7, 2019
What Is Your Passion?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
People often equate passion with sexual desire. However, passion is an interesting word with several shades of meaning.
Merriam-Webster’s online definition reads:
1 often capitalized
a : the sufferings of Christ between the night of the Last Supper and his death
b : an oratorio based on a gospel narrative of the Passion
2 obsolete : suffering
3 : the state or capacity of being acted on by external agents or forces
4 a (1) : emotion (2) plural : the emotions as distinguished from reason
b : intense, driving, or overmastering feeling or conviction
c : an outbreak of anger
5 a : ardent affection : love
b : a strong liking or desire for or devotion to some activity, object, or concept
c : sexual desire
d : an object of desire or deep interest
A synonym could be desire.
Psalm 37:4 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart” (NIV).
At times I’ve read that verse to mean God plants desires within me that He wants to cultivate and fulfill. I’ve also felt it meant God would give me what I so desperately wanted. Therefore, I looked up the original Hebrew word used in that verse for desire, and it means … you guessed it … desire! A request or petition.
But the qualifier in Psalm 37:4 – delighting yourself in the Lord – is the key.
I believe God does put desires in our hearts that He wants to fulfill, yet sometimes they’re so unusual, or seemingly impossible that we doubt they are from Him.
Yet, this is a two-sided belief. I also believe that God hasn’t skipped over anyone. He’s given everyone a desire – passion – that is intended to bring glory to himself and a deep sense of adventure/accomplishment/enjoyment to the individual. Why wouldn’t He? He is creative.
So what are you passionate about? What is it that drives you to pursue what reason may laugh at? What reasonable friends and family members may discredit.
Our God-given passions are likely not easily grasped achievements. Roadblocks, difficulties, and discouragements abound.
Remember the movie, The Passion of the Christ? (See Webster’s No. 1 definition above.) The sufferings (passions) of Jesus were empowered by his passion to fulfill the Father’s plan. It plays across actor Jim Caviezel’s face as he portrays Christ pushing up from the Gethsemane dirt and striding forward. Remember?
Remember the set of his jaw, the determination in his step?
His was not a do-or-die passion. It was do and die. Jesus’ passion was to make it to the cross, and that same passion enabled Him to endure the suffering.
I saw a similar portrayal of passion in another movie, Hacksaw Ridge, when Pfc. Desmond T. Doss (played by Andrew Garfield) turns toward his fellow soldiers after praying prior to the assault. His face betrays the passion of a mission. I imagine Joshua of the Old Testament must have had that same look in his eye before he attacked Jericho.
And what of young David in the Old Testament? What passion drove him to run toward an armored giant in an unreasonable, mismatched challenge?
The quote above should probably say, “Passion stirs our hearts to do what reason (and other people) say cannot be done.” My passion isn’t nearly as fierce or life-threatening as the four mentioned here. I simply want to write. But that desire has met with roadblocks, difficulties, and discouragement.
We often let the naysayers stop us. Like the well-intentioned, multi-published author at a writer’s conference in 2008 who told me it was “too late” for me to write books.
That was fourteen published books ago.
In the 1981 British film, Chariots of Fire, runner Eric Liddell responds to his sister’s admonishment with, “I believe that God made me for a purpose. But He also made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure.”
God loves you, and He is pleased when you enjoy using the gifts, talents, and passions He has placed in your heart.
What is your passion? If you’re not sure, ask God to show you. If it’s been so long since you looked at your passion, ask Him to direct you. There may be aspects and avenues that you’ve not yet considered.
It’s not too late.
What is your passion?
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