Davalynn Spencer's Blog, page 45
January 9, 2017
To Read or Not to Read
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
In 2016 I read several new-to-me authors along with my standby favorites. Not all their books were new releases; several were older.
Today I want to share twelve authors with you that I enjoyed last year. The list is a mix of contemporary and historical romance genres because I read both, though two books are not romances: the first and the last. Most of the authors are women except, yes, the first and the last.
This is by no means a comprehensive list of authors I enjoy, nor is it more than a sampling of the dozens of books I read during the year. There are many more because, as an author, when I’m not writing, wrangling words with my creative-writing students at the college, or traipsing back roads with Blue the Cow Dog, I’m reading.
I hope you’ll find a few new-to-you books in this pile for the coming year.
Happy reading!
Randomly listed in no particular order of enjoyment:
Louis L’Amour – Ride the River
Karen Witemeyer – No Other Will Do, A Worthy Pursuit
Cynthia Ruchti – Restoring Christmas
Laura Frantz – Courting Morrow Little, The Mistress of Tall Acre, The Colonel’s Lady
Liz Johnson – Where Two Hearts Meet
Deeanne Gist – A Bride Most Begrudging
Susan Meissner – The Girl in the Glass
Jen Turano – After a Fashion
Sarah Loudin Thomas – Until the Harvest
Becky Wade – Undeniably Yours
Beth Vogt – You Can’t Hurry Love
William Paul Young – Eve
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Thirty daily devotions for women to start off the new year.
Save
Save
January 2, 2017
Resolution or Revolution?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Help—my plate runneth over! Anyone else feel the same way?
I don’t need
One.
More.
Thing.
To.
Do.
But neither do I need resolutions. I need a revolution—a change. A way to declutter, delete, and delegate some of the activities and obligations in my life that are crowding out more important commitments and responsibilities.
Remember the old slogan, “Just say no.” Easier said than done on many levels.
A resolution (saying) is a statement—a list of things I should do.
A revolution (doing) is an action, and the last time I checked, actions still speak louder than words.
So here’s my approach:
Pray about each activity I’m currently involved in.
Can I delete it or delegate it?
Be kind and professional about it either way.
Remember that God wants me to lighten up. That’s why He said to bring my burdens to Him.
Are you planning a resolution this year or a revolution?
Which would you prefer to see in your life?
Which will bring about the most change?
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Thirty daily devotions for women to start off the new year.
Save
December 26, 2016
Not here, not now.
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Did Mary think,
“O God—not here, not now”?
Yet it was perfect.
The perfect place.
The perfect time.
When we cry out,
“O God—not here, not now”
may we remember that
a less than perfect place,
a less than perfect time
might be
the perfect opportunity
For His love to enfold us,
cradle us,
and shine into someone’s night.
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Save
December 19, 2016
Tinsel or Tension Decking your Halls?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
On cold mornings, I build a fire in our woodstove and sit in front of it with a hot cup of coffee. It’s become my wintertime place to meet with Jesus, the place where I share my heart, read His words, listen for His voice.
Not only does the woodstove offer a tangible warmth, it is companionable—an entity in the room, nearly living and breathing with its glass door that reveals the flickering, glowing flames.
It talks, too.
While the stove heats up, it ticks rapidly as the metal expands in response to the hot flames. But when it cools and the iron “shrinks,” the ticking sounds come slowly. Almost reluctantly.
Our language reflects this physical law—the metaphor has been built in for years. Things (and people) heat up quickly. Tempers flare. It takes longer to cool off. Settle down.
Jesus’ brother James encourages us to reverse the process where our natures are concerned. “Be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath,” he writes.
This Christmas season as we gather with family and friends, in-laws and outlaws, let’s remember James’s instruction.
It is so easy to allow our tempers to flare, fueled by errant words that may be unintentional. Or not. It doesn’t matter.
May we instead bring the peace of Christ to our tables with ears and hearts open to listen and lips ready to smile and praise the King.
The driver passed behind her, smelling of leather and snow. A dark wool shirt hugged his broad shoulders, and the scarf still circled his neck. Without his hat, blond hair fell across his brow, and bright pink tipped his ears and nose. He stood with his back to the flame, and blue eyes swept her with bridled appreciation. He nodded once.
Rattled by his obvious assessment, she returned his nod as curtly as possible. She could be just as tight-lipped as he.
–from “The Snowbound Bride”
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Save
Save
December 12, 2016
Christmas is Messy
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Did you notice the flour on the kitchen flour, the wrapping-paper scraps on the dining table, the crowds at the mall?
Yes, Christmas is messy. Preparation for any important event is usually messy. And complicated. And stressful.
And if we allow it – exciting.
Somehow for me, Christmas excitement erupts in preparations for the big celebration. The decorating. The baking. The gift-wrapping.
I will admit, however, one thing I avoid with great intent is Black Friday shopping. I just don’t go there.
Otherwise, I love the whole getting-ready thing.
I think God enjoys the pre-event planning as well. He says He “prepares a table for me” and goes to “prepare a place” for us.
But when I consider Christmas, I see God’s preparation on a whole different level.
He prepared
a star.
A mother.
An earthly father to watch over His son.
A feed-trough bed.
Shepherds.
Kings.
He prepared for the Advent of Immanuel in all its blessed messiness.
I’m so glad He went to the trouble. A little bit of flour, sticky tape, and wrapping paper seems like so little in comparison.
May you have a very Merry messy Christmas!
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Twelve days until Christmas.
Perfect timing to read one Christmas-Bride novella each day!
Save
Save
Save
December 5, 2016
Barn Beginnings: Heartache & Expectations
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
When I first met Caleb Hutton, he was riding into Cañon City. The year was 1860 and the whole scenario took place in my head, then on my computer, and finally in my first historical novel, The Cowboy Takes a Wife.
Caleb’s journey was of universal appeal. He carried the common baggage of old heartache and new expectations.
The key verse for the story was Jeremiah 29:11. I was quite familiar with these words in the NIV and NKJ translations. But to keep things in proper perspective, I had to use King James language for a story set in 1860. This requirement sent me back to an old Bible and a new observation.
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord,
thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.
An expected end? Whose expected end?
In Caleb’s world, things did not turn out as he expected. Not. At. All.
They turned out better.
Sound familiar?
God has a way of working things out for His children who trust Him.
For Caleb, realization hit him in the barn. He found refuge there, as well as healing of an old wound.
Good things often happen in the most unlikely places. Like a barn or stable or cave or corral.
God chose such a place for the birth of His Son. An unusual location for an unusual beginning.
This Christmas, if you find yourself in a barn-like setting not of your choosing, remember, you’re in good company. Whether emotionally, physically, or relationally it could be that an unusual beginning—and God’s expected end—is near.
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Save
Save
November 28, 2016
Living In the Shadows
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Ever feel like you’re living in the shadows? Like you’re not getting a clear picture—that things could be better, clearer, more focused?
You’re right.
Somehow we know. I think it’s in our DNA.
An ancient teacher named Paul told early Christians not to worry about meeting all the requirements others placed on them regarding ceremonies and celebrations because those traditions merely foreshadowed the reality yet to come.
“Christ himself is that reality,” he said. (Colossians 2:17 NLT)
This Christmas season, let’s celebrate the Light of the World, the One who first came in the darkness of night and will come again to banish every shadow.
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Christmas turned out to be everything Ara Taube didn’t expect.
Save
Save
November 21, 2016
Can We Give Thanks for Little?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
In the busy days approaching,
as families gather … or not,
as tables are spread … or not,
let’s pause in the clamor … or the lonely quiet
and thank God for His great love.
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Save
Save
Save
Save
November 14, 2016
3 Ways to Be Still
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
Our busy lives don’t give us much quiet time to reflect, listen, or simply breathe.
Things always press in, demanding our attention, whether they are as fleeting as the news and social media, or as important as a spouse or child.
But being still—quiet and undistracted—is critical to our spiritual survival in this world so full of noise. Therefore, we have to make time
Not an easy assignment, but doable.
Here are three ways to be still, though I know there must be more:
Take a quiet moment in the early morning.
Even Jesus sometimes got up before everyone else and went off by himself to pray. He was always surrounded by people, yet He made the effort to be alone with His Father.
Go for a walk outside.
One of my favorite verses says Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. I don’t have a sea near my house, but I have a place I walk where I can be quiet and listen.
Steal away while the kids are napping.
Seventeenth-century mother of 19 (not all survived infancy) Susanna Wesley found it difficult to get a moment to herself, so she made an “apron escape.” When she sat down and pulled her large apron up over her head, her children knew Mother was praying and to leave her alone. An unusual tactic, but it worked.
These three suggestions go hand-in-hand with three mandatory requirements:
Turn off the television/radio.
Silence the phone.
Shut down the Internet.
When the Old Testament prophet, Elijah, sought God, he found the Creator not in wind, quake, or fire.
God was in the whisper.
As we prepare for the busiest time of year in the next couple of months, may we
Let the silence in.
Wait for God.
Listen for His voice.
Maybe He won’t say anything earth-trembling.
Maybe He won’t say anything more than, “I am here.”
But isn’t that what we need the most? To know that He is God – God with us.
If you have found a way to be still in your day-to-day life, please share it with others in the comments below.
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
November 7, 2016
In all the clamoring, be still …
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer
There’s a lot of clamoring right now. A lot of noise. A lot of posturing and pointing, criticism and chaos.
And none of it is new. It’s all happened before, many times, in fact. And God’s antidote is also the same:
Be still …
When the mountains of man’s machinations tumble into the sea,
God is there.
When the faulty foundations of our schemes quake and crumble,
God is there.
And when we quiet ourselves before our Maker and cease our incessant shrieking,
God is there.
He is bigger than all the noise around us.
Take heart, be still, and know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies is God …
and He is there.
Connect with me via:
Newsletter | Facebook | Pinterest
#lovingthecowboy
Save
Save
