Davalynn Spencer's Blog, page 41
October 23, 2017
“I Will Give You Rest”
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Years ago I heard a preacher explain his take on three segments of our waking hours: morning, afternoon, and evening.
“Work two of them,” he said. “Not three.”
He didn’t tout one segment over the others as the one to take off, he simply said to pick two during which you’re the most productive and use the third to recharge.
As an a.m. person, I’m out of the chute before dawn. Morning is when most of my work is accomplished, and I continue strong into the afternoon.
Between five and six, I start winding down. But the crazy thing is, I have to make myself stop.
There’s so much more I could accomplish if I just pressed on. Then I remember that pastor’s advice, and I stop the work. Not all activity, just the work part of it. The evening is spent reading or researching, enjoying the waning day or a hobby, or maybe watching a movie.
An added benefit is that I sleep better when I’m not grinding at the grist mill all my waking hours. For me, recharging occurs during wakeful rest, not just during exhausted sleep.
Not everyone can follow this advice. Many people work twelve-hour shifts with road-time tacked on to each end. Little down time is left.
Others work two jobs just to make ends meet. And a few of us writer types are frequently on deadline which pushes us into the late-night hours.
But when it’s possible, I relish those few wakeful hours before bedtime when I’m not in overdrive, high-productivity mode.
They’re a good time to take a walk. Read a book. Play with the children or visit a friend. Drink in the beauty of God’s creation. Rest—with eyes open.
I hope you can try it. It’s surprisingly refreshing.
It is useless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, anxiously working for food to eat; for God gives rest to his loved ones. Psalm 127:2
~~~
The promised peace settled upon him like a warm cloak. Outside the wind beat against the livery, and the building groaned in the onslaught. He wrapped his arms across his chest and held the book within them. Finally, after months of running, here in a barn, he could rest in God’s expected end. Not what he, Caleb, had expected, but what the Lord had planned. ~Loving the Horseman
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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October 16, 2017
Outlived your purpose?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Nine years ago at my first writers’ conference, I met with a well-known (and probably exhausted) novelist for what industry folk call a “one-on-one.” It was the equivalent of a first-grader sitting down with a Ph.D. professor for a career pep-talk.
“What do you write,” the author asked.
I was such a greenhorn in the fiction-writing world, I didn’t even have a sense of direction about what I wanted to write. At least I knew enough not to say, “Whatever you want.”
As a seasoned journalist. I’d covered everything from my community’s largest pumpkin patch, monthly school board meetings, and the annual 4-H livestock sale to fatal vehicle accidents, bank robberies, and the Columbine school shooting. I’d won awards, including one for a feature story in the Prorodeo Sports News, and I’d sold inspirational material to several Christian publications. I knew how to tell a story, and I wanted to start telling my own.
But first I had to pick a category.
Contemporary, historical, romance, suspense, Christian, general market, board books for small children, middle-grade stories, thrillers, cozy mysteries, suspense, horror, sci-fi, fantasy…
You get the idea.
I’d taken three partial manuscripts with me to that interview: a children’s story about a hen that crowed (because we actually had a hen that crowed), a 30-day devotional book for women (nonfiction again), and a contemporary romantic-suspense novel about a gal in a beach-side bungalow who thought she was being stalked.
What I didn’t have was focus.
The author looked at the hen story, handed it back, eyed me with pity and said, “It’s a little late. You should have started this years ago,” or something to that effect.
I picked up my folder, said thank you, and took my thick-skinned reporter’s attitude to the next workshop on the conference agenda.
That was nine published books ago. All fiction.
Thank God I didn’t let that 15-minute interview squelch my dream.
Of course I’m not the only traveler in this world to hit roadblocks.
One of my favorite (nonfiction) stories has to do with a young Royal who had a temper, killed a guy who was mistreating someone else, and ended up a fugitive on the backside of a Middle East desert. He probably thought it was too late, that he’d be a sheep herder the rest of his life.
God had other plans for Moses.
Another guy named David rocked his way into a king’s palace, where he was soon dodging spears, assassination plots, and deadly jealousy.
Then there’s Peter, a world-class fisherman, who changed the world with his words because God saw beyond his limitations.
Some of us have old dreams hiding deep inside. Some of us are afraid that we’ve outlived our usefulness, our purpose.
Some of us think it’s too late because we lost our job, a relationship crumbled, or the doctor gave us bad news.
Here’s the news we need to consider: God is never caught by surprise.
What we call “too late” could be a reboot.
Jesus said, “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev. 21:5).
Like Moses, David, and Peter, we can give God the chance to do that very thing with us. Or we can curl up in a ball because “it’s too late.”
What will it be?
~~~
Step into the 1800s and read how God showed three men and three women that it wasn’t too late. Initially released as stand-alone books in 2014, the Cañon City Chronicles have been freshly edited, re-covered, and two of them renamed. I wrote them as a series about a fictional family set against the historical backdrop of Cañon City, Colorado, and I’m thrilled to offer them in that format today. Each book does stand alone, but there is a continuity that connects them all, an element of watching a family grow through challenges, heartaches, and second chances. A variety of purchase options can be found by clicking on the boxed set image.
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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October 9, 2017
All the Trees … Sing for Joy!
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Autumn is my favorite season. It’s as if God turns on a hidden light somewhere, and everything starts glowing from the inside out.
Trees.
Flowers.
Mountains.
Sky.
I can almost hear the colors – because of the light.
Without light, there would be no color. No reds or golds or lavenders. No sweet green, warm yellow, or crystal blue. Nothing.
A recent morning quiet time led me to John 8:12, and the familiar words captivated me in a new way.
“I am the light of the world,” Jesus said. “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Never walk in darkness. I like that part.
This promise resounds in the fall festival of color around us – as if creation is praising the One who gives it life, reminding us that His light shines from the inside out.
As the Psalmist wrote, “Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, Lord” (Psalm 89:15).
May we walk in such life-light during this season of splendor!
~~~
Available for pre-order, The Cañon City Chronicles
Caleb had read about the aspen that flecked the mountains—those white-barked trees that bore the gold men didn’t hunt, the kind that showed itself year after year as witness to a providential hand. ~Loving the Horseman, Book 1
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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October 2, 2017
In Returning and Rest
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Have you ever discovered a pathway that looks like the road home? Even if you never walked it and never lived there?
It invites you.
That’s how I felt when I first saw this path through an autumn wood. Unknown to me, it beckoned, as if it led to a perfect place where I’d want to stay forever.
What is it about these forested lanes and winding trails that draw us as if to what our hearts might call “the way home”?
“Home” means different things to different people.
For some, it’s not such a positive place and they never want to go back. For other’s it’s an environment they never want to leave.
And for others still, home is not a place but a person.
I think that’s what God was telling His wayward people through the prophet Isaiah:
“In returning and rest you shall be saved;
In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.”
By returning to Him, they would find what they lacked.
When I need rest and quietness and confidence, I return to Him, my “first love” (Rev. 2:4).
I can truly rest only in His presence, when I lay aside what troubles me and focus my attention on Him.
And it helps when I discover a lovely path like the one pictured above, where I can “go home” to Him and spend time listening and letting go.
May you find such a place this fall as nature puts on her finery and invites you to walk the pathway home.
~~~
All she’d ever wanted was a real home. ~An Improper Proposal
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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September 25, 2017
Persistence
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
My friend took this picture because she had to.
Not because she likes spiders (she doesn’t), but because of the amazingly, intricate design patiently created by a small, faithful spinner – an orb-weaver.
I’m not a spider fan either, but as part of God’s creation, they too have something to show us, and I believe this spinner’s lesson is persistence.
Tenacity.
Doggedness.
Resolve.
Jesus mentioned such perseverance during a conversation on prayer.
“Keep on asking … keep on seeking … keep on knocking.” (Luke 11:9-10)
The bottom-line message? Don’t quit. Don’t give up. Don’t let go.
“For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.”
~~~
Coming soon! Book 1 in the Cañon City Chronicles, re-released under new cover, new title, and fresh edits. (Originally published in 2014 as The Cowboy Takes a Wife.)
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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September 18, 2017
Our Deepest Need is to Belong
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Horses are gregarious by nature.
They’d rather be with other horses than be alone. Regardless of their height, coloring, and disposition, they want to be part of the herd.
So do most people.
A couple of Sundays ago, our pastor challenged us with a bold statement that some may have disagreed with while others silently cheered:
“Our deepest need is to belong.”
What he said makes sense when you think about it. Cities, communities, churches. Families, clubs, gangs. People want to be part of the herd.
Specifically, we want to be heard. But that’s just one of the “be’s” that fall under belonging.
We want to be loved.
And we want to be needed.
God designed us that way, and so He opens His arms to us and says, “Come to Me!”
He wants us to be part of His family, regardless of our background, race, and disposition, because that’s where we belong.
With Him, we can be heard, loved, and needed.
So what are you waiting for?
Come running. Don’t let anything fence you off from where you belong.
And as the pastor says, “Don’t just go to church. Be the church.”
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Galatians 3:28
Be heard. Isaiah 65:24; Psalm 40:1
Be loved. 1 John 4:19; Jeremiah 31:3
Be needed. 1 Peter 2:9
She clucked Ginger into a lope, marveling at the cerulean sky and rolling grassland that spread unfettered between mountain ridges. She felt exactly the same—unfettered. Free yet belonging to someplace, to someone. ~from An Improper Proposal
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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September 11, 2017
In the Storm
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
We all face storms.
Hurricanes. Wildfires. Sick children. Disinterested spouses. Cutbacks at work.
Yet in their song “Just Be Held,” contemporary Christian band, Casting Crowns, sings, “In the storm is where you’ll find Me.”
Whoa – how can they say that?
“They’ve never been through my storm,” you may argue. “They don’t know my pain.”
But they know God.
I believe we find God in the storm because He doesn’t cut and run for cover. He stays with us, right beside us.
He is our cover.
I cannot improve on the lyrics to “Just Be Held,” so I encourage your to click on the link here and just listen. This song presents some of the most powerful, encouraging words in music today.
Listen with open ears, but watch, too, for the lyrics appear on the screen, and there’s an added comfort in seeing God’s offer printed out before you.
Whatever your storm this week, you’ll find Him there.
He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. Psalm 104:3
Mae Ann had learned what a summer storm could do. Rain-gorged creeks became raging rivers, and if Cade didn’t stop the wagon before they reached the upper crossing of Olin Creek, they might not make it across without being swept away.
“Oh, Lord, we need Your help.” The slashing rain and wind tore the words from her lips.
~from An Improper Proposal
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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September 4, 2017
Labor-of-Love Day Weekend
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
There may be fewer backyard barbecues and camping trips this Labor Day Weekend, because many people have transformed it into a Labor-of-Love Day Weekend, helping the devastated and displaced victims of Hurricane Harvey.
Countless stories have made the news about neighbors helping neighbors, first responders rescuing the stranded, and other groups and individuals rushing in as the waters recede to fill the gaps with food, clothing, medical supplies, and comfort.
I posted a video on my author Facebook page of a Texas cowboy rescuing horses that were trapped by the floodwaters. Such responses to the needs of neighbors, whether right next door, across state lines, or across the nation are a blessing to see.
Lately I’ve been reading the Old Testament, and a section from Deuteronomy 22:1-4 rang with immediate application:
If you see your neighbor’s ox or sheep or goat wandering away, don’t ignore your responsibility. Take it back to its owner. If its owner does not live nearby or you don’t know who the owner is, take it to your place and keep it until the owner comes looking for it. Then you must return it. Do the same if you find your neighbor’s donkey, clothing, or anything else your neighbor loses. Don’t ignore your responsibility. If you see that your neighbor’s donkey or ox has collapsed on the road, do not look the other way. Go and help your neighbor get it back on its feet!
Twice the reader is reminded, “Don’t ignore your responsibility.”
Jesus’ story of the Good Samaritan follows this same idea.
This Labor Day, let’s look around and see if there is someone we can offer a hand to and pass on the blessings that God has shared with us. Let’s make it a Labor-of-Love Day Weekend.
If you’re looking for a way to help from a distance, check out Convoy of Hope’s website by clicking on the red box.
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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August 28, 2017
The Gift of Peace: Accept or Reject?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Authors are often asked how much of themselves they write into their characters. I’ve never been quite sure how much of an answer to give.
A person typically writes from his or her heart, so naturally, pieces of that heart are floating around in the story. A piece here … a peace there.
In my latest book, An Improper Proposal, Mae Ann Remington’s unusual wedding culminates with the pastor pronouncing the priestly blessing found in Numbers 6:24-26:
The Lord bless thee, and keep thee;
The Lord make his face shine upon thee,
And be gracious unto thee:
The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee,
And give thee peace.
The last line catches Mae Ann’s attention, and she realizes that she has a choice to make:
In the midst of an uncomfortable and unexpected situation, would she accept God’s gift of peace or refuse it?
Mae Ann might be a fictional character, but she grapples with a very real choice that each of us face on a daily basis.
God doesn’t force his peace upon us, He holds it out to us. Jesus reiterated the gesture when He said, “My peace I give to you” (John 14:27).
Like Mae Ann, we can either trust Him to make good on His word, or clutch our worries and fears in white-knuckled fingers and miss out on what He’s giving.
~~~
One of my favorite devotional books is Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. Over and over, the brief daily thoughts remind the reader that the peace of God’s presence is a most precious commodity.
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(c) 2017 Davalynn Spencer, all rights reserved.
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August 21, 2017
No Darkness at All
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Millions of people across North America eagerly anticipate witnessing today’s great solar eclipse. Hopefully, they won’t truly witness it – gazing in an unprotected manner and permanently damaging their eyes.
Solar eclipses have fascinated people for thousands of years, creating fear in the hearts of ancient civilizations and filling the coffers of more modern entrepreneurs. Celestial events have a way of doing that.
The Bible tells us that such magnificent, astronomical displays will also be signs announcing the end of time as we know it and the coming of the Lord (Matthew 24:29, Isaiah 13:10).
However, today’s solar eclipse is all about position and perspective.
By comparison, earth’s small moon could never obliterate the larger sun’s light. But for those on earth in the path of the moon’s orbit, the celestial speck will momentarily block the sun’s direct light and create a comparatively localized shadow on the earth’s surface.
Have you ever felt like you were living in an emotional or spiritual shadow? What if getting out from under it were as simple as stepping into the light?
Our God holds the universe—as well as our hearts—in His hand, and we need not fear looking to Him with eyes of faith. I draw great comfort from knowing that we can count on His light to never darken in our lives. Nothing can block us from His love, nor will He ever turn away, leaving us in shadow.
During today’s rare, cosmic display, may we be reminded of our Lord’s great faithfulness:
God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5
Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. James 1:17
“The Lord make His face shine upon thee …” ~An Improper Proposal
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