Francine Rivers's Blog, page 14

Shrek the Sheep

My daughter, Shannon, sent me a link to a story about a ten-year old New Zealand farm-owned merino sheep who managed to evade shearing by hiding out in a cave for six years.  By the time Shrek was found, he looked like a wooly giant beach ball with a nose.  He could hardly walk with his burden of sixty pounds of wool – enough to make 20 men’s suits. Another sheep, Chris, was separated from the ... Read more

Girls’ Time Out with Shadia Hrichi

Every couple of months, our church throws a fun “Girls Time Out” which usually involves a terrific speaker, lots of yummy food and plenty of time to hang out together.  Always lots of laughter.  We’re a small congregation, so we all know one another.  So, this is also an evening when we can bring friends or acquaintances to join in the fun. This latest GTO was a special treat because we had Bible teacher, Shadia Hrichi, ... Read more

Road Trip – Yellowstone

Rick took our eldest son to Spring Training in Phoenix, and our younger son on a road trip to the Grand Canyon, Bryce and Zion.  So, I asked our daughter where she would like to go and her quick answer was “Yellowstone!”  My quick response was “All right!”  We met in Las Vegas, overnighted, then flew to Denver and on to Jackson Hole where we picked up our rental car. Our first two nights were spent ... Read more

Creative People

One of my favorite things to do at the County Fair each year is wander slowly through the buildings displaying arts and crafts, landscape design and new or improved inventions.  I’m always amazed at the creativity and ingenuity of people.  Ornate, hand-made clocks, oil and watercolor paintings, photography, embroidery, quilting, rug making, needlepoint so fine it looks like a photograph, bread-cake-cookie baking, wood carving, poetry by young and old framed for our delight, canning, gutter guards, ... Read more

Sarge and the Tick

We’ve had Sarge on medications that are supposed to repel fleas and ticks.  Well, one day I was scratching his back and noticed a strange lump.  Upon further investigation, I found a swollen, tidily tucked in tick buried deep in his flesh under all that fur.  It was pretty big, and clearly full of Sarge’s blood.   I know better than to pull off a tick.  The head can remain inside the flesh and spread infection.  ... Read more

Saying Goodbye

Rick and I attended a beautiful memorial service for his cousin this week-end.  My brother and sister-in-law also attended, the wife being a close friend of my sister-in-law, Rick’s cousin a good friend of my brother.  Dave and his wife met at my brother’s wedding, and we all grew up together in the same small town. 

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Coulda Shoulda

Rick has just lost a special cousin to cancer.  We were able to visit him twice, and hoped to see him again.  We also wanted to know if he believed in Jesus and knew where he was going.  His face lit up when we asked, and he said, “Oh, yes, I believe in Jesus.”  We didn’t worry after that, but we still hoped we’d have more time.  He had been told ten months, then two.  It ended up being less than a month.

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Drought and Vineyards

Another year of drought has brought noticeable changes in our area.  The reservoirs are drying up.  Fires are raging. Wildlife suffers.  Without strength-restoring water, the flowering plum trees are dying because they no longer have the immunity to fight off the beetles. Many roadside redwoods are brown skeletons.  Lawns are dead because “brown is the new green” in California.   I’ve wondered about all the vintners in our area, the thousands of grape vines on hill and dale.   

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On Rearing Children

Recently, a writer friend asked me to answer some questions about parenthood.  Oh, my.  My three children are adults and their children are fast approaching adulthood, which gives you an idea of how long ago it was that I was parenting.  Not that it ever stops.  No matter how old your children are, they are still your children.  You’re still concerned about them. I try not to give advice.  (If my children read this blog, they’ll be cackling over that one.)  My advice is usually, “Don’t make the same mistakes I did.” 

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Good Reads and Favorite Shows

I’ve read several books recently I’d like to recommend.  First is Seduced: The Grooming of America’s Teenagers by Opal Singleton.  I had the pleasure of meeting the author at an International Conference on Missions where Rick and I attended several classes she taught on sex trafficking worldwide and specifically in the United States.  What we learned from Opal Singleton impelled us to connect with a local ministry.  Seduced has a great deal packed into it, including much needed information on internet danger areas, how to spot sex trafficking in your co

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