Janet Sketchley's Blog: Tenacity, page 104

Lesson from a Christmas Carol

If I told you God used a Christmas carol to reinforce something He’s been teaching me, you wouldn’t be too surprised. We have so many beautiful songs of the season, rich in faith and Christian heritage.

Which song do you think He used?

Silent Night?

O Come, All Ye Faithful?

Joy to the World?

(I added the photo so you wouldn’t see my answer before you made your guess.)

Actually, it was Jolly Old St. Nicholas. A song I don’t even particularly like, which reminds me to be alert for God’s voice anywher...

God and People, Reconciled

The Saviour—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!
Luke 2:11, NLT*

Nobody was ready. They didn’t even know He was coming, especially not that way—as a helpless baby—and in that place and moment.

But He came. God incarnate.

Because we’d never be ready without His help.

God with us. Our salvation. Our redeemer. Our friend. Our hope.

The word “sinners” is out of favour these days, perhaps because it conjures images of pointing fingers and judging tones. But “s...

Review: Christmas in Shades of Gray, by Tina Pinson

Christmas in Shades of Gray, by Tina Pinson (Desert Breeze Publishing, 2013)

We meet David Pareman as a terminally ill man in hospital, bitter and alone. There’s something about his voice, though, that appeals. I bought the novel after reading the opening online. Listen to how he describes himself:

It’s Christmas time, but I’m not feeling altogether festive. Given the strands of tubing attached to me and all the off sounding carols played by the machines keeping track of my body rhythms, and th...

Letting Christ Shine In You At Christmas (Guest Post)

Letting Christ Shine In You At Christmas
by Nike Chillemi

Nike Chillemi

The Christmas season can get kinda funny when I start thinking about God’s will and plan for me. That’s true even though I dearly desire for God’s priorities to be my priorities.

Right after Thanksgiving, if not before, I’m in the Christmas spirit. Things seem a little lighter, a little brighter. You don’t have to be a believer to feel this. Lots of individuals who do not classify themselves as Christians have moments durin...

What Holds You Together?

The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.
Hebrews 1:3, NLT*

Jesus sustains everything. He holds it all together: atoms and solar systems, swirling in their created dance. He draws it out, lets it continue and resonate like a lasting chord played on a piano.

When life feels like it’...

Review: Goodbye Noel, by Nike Chillemi

Goodbye Noel, by Nike Chillemi (Desert Breeze Publishing, 2011)

The year is 1946. In the fictional town of Sanctuary Point, on the south shore of Long Island, New York, life is getting back on track after the war. It’s Christmas time, and spirits are high – until Katrina Lenart finds one of her neighbours dead.

Who would murder this young woman while her baby slept in the next room? With the father nowhere to be found, Katrina gets permission to care for the infant. She is, after all, a pediatr...

Meet Author D. M. Webb

Writing as D. M. Webb, Daphne Self is the author of the novel Mississippi Nights and the devotional book 30 Days: A Devotional Memoir.

Janet: Welcome, Daphne. I see from your blog that you’re a homeschooling mom with a lengthy to-do list and a love of travel. Scotland and Florence, Italy… what puts those diverse locations at the top of your overseas wish list?

Daphne: Thanks for having me here, Janet. It’s an honor. To answer the question, Scotland because my ancestors, the McGregors, came from...

Faith, Patience, Love and Endurance

But you, Timothy, certainly know what I teach, and how I live, and what my purpose in life is. You know my faith, my patience, my love, and my endurance.
2 Timothy 3:10, NLT*

I don’t know about you, but when I think of the Apostle Paul, patience and love aren’t top of my list of descriptions. I mean no disrespect to this ambassador for Christ—he’s a hero of the faith. But he sounds like he was a hard fellow to live and work with.

Faith? His was more than intellectual belief. He lived it, and di...

Review: Cecile’s Christmas Miracle, by Ruth L. Snyder

Cecile’s Christmas Miracle, by Ruth Snyder (Helping Hands Press, 2013)

Christmas homesickness hits a young missionary nurse serving her first year in Botswana. Cecile gave up the man she loved to follow God’s call – but why is her heart still yearning for home?

This short story has potential for a full-length novel. Stopping where it does, with the miracle Cecile receives (I’m not telling what it is!) leaves plenty of scope for the imagination. Working in the limits of the sho...

Pushing Through, by Jennifer Maggio

Today we have another guest post, from award-winning author/speaker Jennifer Maggio. Jennifer has a passion for single moms. I’ll let her tell you more. Read to the end to see how you can win a free ebook:

Pushing Through
by Jennifer Maggio

Fifteen years ago, I found myself curled in a ball in the middle of my cold, bathroom floor, crying hysterically. I was convinced that no one could possibly understand the depths of my pain. When would this misery end? I was broken. I had no money, few friend...