Julie Arduini's Blog, page 33

Proverbs 9:10 Ministries (Includes Podcast)

We are Christine Paxson & Rose Spiller. Co-founders of Proverbs 9:10 Ministries, co-hosts of the Podcast, No Trash, Just Truth, and co-authors of books, No Half Truths Allowed – Understanding the Complete Gospel Message (book & study guide released on May 8, 2020) and The Bible Blueprint – A Guide to Better Understanding the Bible from Genesis to Revelation (due out Spring 2021)

            We both come from different backgrounds, but in 2009, God brought us together by putting us both at the same church. The friendship was instantaneous; and out of that friendship has grown a partnership and passion to serve the Lord by learning, discipling, teaching, writing, and speaking.

About four years ago, we felt led to create Proverbs 9:10 Ministries. We chose that title because Proverbs 9:10 says, “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom; knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” The only way to grow in your faith and in wisdom is to know God! And the only way to truly know God is to study Scripture. We saw a deep need for Biblical literacy while we attended a church that had did not put a high priority on knowing Scripture, doctrine, or theology. Sermons and Bible Studies offered there were little more than moral lessons and self-help sessions. This ignited in us both, a passion to help women move away from the garbage that is being pedaled as “Women Bible Studies,” but is instead, false teaching that is dumbing women down with fluffy, often times heretical nonsense that is much more about the individual and her victories, than about learning the Bible or understanding and glorifying God. Our motto for our podcast says it all, “Taking out the trash of false teaching and replacing it with Biblical Truth.”

We had both been teaching Bible Studies for over 20 years, but it was at this time, that we felt God leading us to begin to write our own Bible Studies. It was out of one of those studies that the book, No Half Truths, was born. Along with need for deeper study and more knowledge of the Bible, is understanding and being able to articulate the complete Gospel message. The Gospel message is the life-saving, life-giving, life-transforming message that every human being of every age needs, and is the central message of the entire Bible! It’s crucial that we get it right so that we are not selling those we witness to, and more importantly God, short. Just like false teaching, there are a lot of false gospels out there and they are often used in Christian circles on a regular basis. In the book, we go through many of these false gospels, and point out why they are not the Gospel. Besides explaining every facet of the true Gospel message, the book also gives a solid foundational theology, with chapters on each of the three Persons of the Trinity and touching on a few essential doctrines.

No Half Truths Allowed – Understanding the Complete Gospel Message has recently won bronze in the “Illuminations” award for theology! We are very excited about this honor and pray our book continues to bless those who read it!

Next, in the very near future, is the release of our second book, The Bible Blueprint – A Guide to Better Understanding the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. The original release date was February, but with Covid, production was pushed back to this spring. The Bible Blueprint divides the entire Bible chronologically into six easy to read sections. It provides a basic understanding of Scripture as a complete story that links all the various books together. It gives an overview of each book, touching on highlights and some of the amazing and significant events in each, while helping with comprehension of the more difficult sections.

And everyone is always welcome to check out our podcast, No Trash, Just Truth, for weekly 20 to 30 minute episodes. The audio podcast is available on all major podcast platforms, while the video version is available on YouTube and Rumble.

May you all have a blessed day!

Chris & Rose are co-founders of Proverbs 9:10 Ministries and co-hosts of the No Trash, Just Truth Podcast. They have been teaching Bible Studies for over 20 years and have written many of their own studies. Along with teaching together, they also speak at conferences and retreats. Both have graduated from the “Dimensions of the Faith” Program from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary; and continue their seminary studies by taking online classes through Reformed Theological Seminary and through Biblical Training’s “Institute” Program.

Chris resides in Lancaster County with her husband of over 31 years, John. They have twin sons in the USAF. Rose and her husband, Ed, have recently sold their home and now live full-time in their RV to travel between their four children and eight grandchildren.

Besides their first book, No Half-Truths Allowed – Understanding the Complete Gospel Message, Chris and Rose have a second book, “The Bible Blueprint – A Guide to Better Understanding the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, is due out in spring of 2021. They are in the process of writing their third book.

Fiction Finder: March 2021 New Releases

March 2021 New Releases

More in-depth descriptions of these books can be found on the ACFW Fiction Finder website

 

Biblical:

Miriam’s Song by Jill Eileen Smith — In her eventful lifetime, Miriam was many things to many people: protective older sister, song leader, prophetess, leper. But between the highs and the lows, she was a girl who dreamed of freedom, a woman who longed for love, a leader who made mistakes, and a friend who valued connection. (Biblical from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

 

 

Contemporary Romance:

Amish Midwives by Amy Clipston — From bestselling authors of Amish Fiction come three sweet stories about new life, hope, and romance. (Contemporary Romance from HarperCollins Christian Publishing)

 

A Brother’s Promise by Mindy Obenhaus — He didn’t realize he wanted a family… Until he suddenly became a single dad. After his sister’s death, rancher Mick Ashford’s determined to ensure his orphaned niece, Sadie, feels at home. And accepting guidance from Christa Slocum is his first step. But just as Christa and Sadie begin to settle into Mick’s heart, Sadie’s paternal grandparents sue for custody. Now Mick must fight to keep them together…or risk losing the makeshift family he’s come to love. (Contemporary Romance from Love Inspired/Harlequin)

 

General Contemporary:

Facing the Dawn by Cynthia Ruchti — While her humanitarian husband Liam has been digging wells in Africa, Mara Jacobs has been struggling. She knows she’s supposed to feel a warm glow that her husband is nine time zones away, caring for widows and orphans. But the reality is that she is exhausted, working a demanding yet unrewarding job, trying to manage their three detention-prone kids, failing at her to-repair list, and fading like a garment left too long in the sun. (General Contemporary from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

 

 

Historical:

A Tapestry of Light by Kimberly Duffy — Ottilie Russell is adrift between two cultures, British and Indian, belonging to both and neither. In order to support her little brother, Thaddeus, and her grandmother, she relies upon her skills in beetle-wing embroidery that have been passed down to her through generations of Indian women. When a stranger appears with the news that Thaddeus is now Baron Sunderson and must travel to England to take his place as a nobleman, Ottilie is shattered by the secrets that come to light. (General Historical from Bethany House)

 

The Rose Keeper by Jennifer Lamont Leo — July 1944. Chicago nurse Clara Janacek has spent her whole life taking care of other people. Grumpy yet loveable, all she wants now is to live out her life in peace, tending her roses and protecting her heart. But beneath the gruff exterior lies a story, and when new neighbors move in and shake up her quiet world, Clara must grapple with long-buried realities. (General Historical, Independently Published)

In the Dead of the Night by JP Robinson — Leila is forced back into the shadows when the leader of a German spy ring kidnaps her child, jeopardizing Europe’s fragile bid for peace. (General Historical from Logos Publications)

 

Historical Romance:

Dreams Rekindled by Amanda Cabot — Though she hopes for a quiet, uncomplicated life for herself, Dorothy Clark wants nothing more than to stir others up. Specifically, she dreams of writing something that will challenge people as much as Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin seems to have. But in 1850s Mesquite Springs, there are few opportunities for writers — until newspaperman Brandon Holloway arrives, that is. (Historical Romance from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

 

Sing in the Sunlight by Kathleen Denly — Richard Stevens isn’t who he thinks he is. Neither is the woman who now claims his last name. Disfiguring scars stole Clarinda Humphrey’s singing career, her home, and her family, but she refuses to let her appearance steal her future. While attending The Young Ladies Seminary in 1858 Benicia, California, she finds a man who promises to love and cherish her. Instead he betrays her, leaving her with child, and Clarinda must take drastic measures to ensure her child doesn’t suffer for her foolishness. (Historical Romance from Wild Heart Books)

The Curator’s Daughter by Melanie Dobson — 1940. Hanna Tillich cherishes her work as an archaeologist for the Third Reich, searching for the Holy Grail and other artifacts to bolster evidence of a master Aryan race. But when she is reassigned to work as a museum curator in Nuremberg, then forced to marry an SS officer and adopt a young girl, Hanna begins to see behind the Nazi facade. A prayer labyrinth becomes a storehouse for Hanna’s secrets, but as she comes to love Lilly as her own daughter, she fears that what she’s hiding―and what she begins to uncover―could put them both in mortal danger. (Historical Romance from Tyndale House)

My Dear MISS DUPRÉ by Grace Hitchcock — Willow Dupré never thought she would have to marry, but with her father’s unexpected retirement from running the prosperous Dupré sugar refinery, plans changed. The shareholders are unwilling to allow a female to take over the company without a man at her side, so her parents devise a plan—find Willow a spokesman king in order for her to become queen of the empire. Willow is presented with thirty potential suitors from the families of New York society’s elite group called the Four Hundred. She has six months to court the group and is expected to eliminate men each month to narrow her beaus. (Historical Romance from Bethany House)

Rayne’s Redemption by Linda Shenton Matchett — Will she have to lose her identity to find true love? Twin sisters Rayne and Jessica Dalton have been swapping places their whole lives, so when Jessica dies on the eve of heading west to become a mail-order bride, Rayne decides to fill her sister’s shoes. The challenge will be faking Jessica’s faith in God. Can Rayne fool her prospective groom without losing her heart…or her soul? (Historical Romance from Shortwave Press)

Romantic Suspense/Thriller:

Unknown Threat by Lynn H. Blackburn — US Secret Service Special Agent Luke Powell is lucky to be alive. Three of his fellow agents have died in unusual circumstances in the past ten weeks. Luke is devastated by the loss of his friends and colleagues, and his inability to locate the killer feels like a personal failure. He and his team are experts at shielding others, but now the protectors are in need of protection. (Romantic Suspense from Revell – A Division of Baker Publishing Group)

Hours to Kill by Susan Sleeman — Just as Homeland Security Agent Addison Leigh reaches the pinnacle of her cyber investigation into a firearms smuggling ring, she’s attacked and left for dead. Her estranged husband, ICE Agent Mack Jordan, is notified that she’s at the hospital in a coma. He may have let his past military trauma ruin their short marriage, but she never gave up on their relationship, and he remains her next of kin. hen a second attempt to take her life is made, it’s clear something very sinister is going on, and Mack and Addison are in for the ride of their lives. (Romantic Suspense from Bethany House)

Abducted in Alaska by Darlene L. Turner — Saving a boy who has escaped his captors puts Canadian border patrol officer Hannah Morgan right into the path of a ruthless child-smuggling ring. Now with help from police constable Layke Jackson, she must keep the child safe. But can they rescue the other abducted children and bring down the gang…all while protecting a little boy and keeping themselves alive? (Romantic Suspense from Love Inspired/Harlequin)

 

Western:

Braced for Love by Mary Connealy — Left with little back in Missouri, Kevin Hunt takes his younger siblings on a journey to Wyoming when he receives news that he’s inheriting part of a ranch. The catch is that the ranch is also being given to a half-brother he never knew existed. Turns out, Kevin’s supposedly dead father led a secret and scandalous life. (Western from Bethany House)

 

Plus check out these recent additions to Fiction Finder published within the past month:

Seasons of Love by Joan Deppa, The beautiful, western Upper Peninsula of Michigan, with snow covered hills in the winter; Lake Superior, as well as inland lakes and numerous waterfalls in the summer; and colorful leaves in Autumn, are the setting for three couples who discover new adventures and enjoy the nature that surrounds them. (Contemporary Romance)

Medicine, Murder and Small Town Scandal by KC Hart, When the meanest man in Skeeterville drops dead at his mailbox, no one suspects foul play until Katy Cross stumbles across a skeleton from his past… literally. (Cozy Mystery)

Hunt for Grace by Tammy F. Kirty, Can two people find peace in the present when faced daily with their pasts? (Historical Romance)

Kate’s Quest by Seralynn Lewis, Sparks fly in this opposites attract journey when a my way or the highway soldier collides with a determined woman on a mission to find her family. (Contemporary Romance)

Starstruck in Willow Falls by Pat Nichols, Heartwarming, emotionally charged saga of a small Southern town’s struggle for survival and two women’s challenge to balance family and career. (General Contemporary)

Matched Hearts by Cathe Swanson, She’s looking for one date. He’s looking for “Happily Ever After.” Is it a computer error or a match made in heaven? (Contemporary Romance)

A Texas Bond by Shannon Taylor Vannatter, Learning he’s an uncle shocks Ross Lyles—but after years of handling his brother’s bombshells, at least this surprise is a blessing. A pair of five-year-old blessings Ross is determined to meet, if he can convince their aunt to give him a chance. (Contemporary Romance)

Official Average Boy Podcast

There’s always something fun and fullfilling going on with Focus on the Family/Adventures in Odyssey Club. Did you know there’s a podcast?

Engage your family’s faith as you enjoy a full year’s worth of weekly family devotions that your kids are sure to love. Laugh and learn about God by listening to the “Official Average Boy” podcast and going through the discussion questions. As a family you’ll dig into the truth about serving others, reading the Bible, setting goals, showing patience, overcoming fear, defending your faith and lots more! Hosted by Christian comedian Bob Smiley and Focus on the Family Clubhouse® editor Jesse Florea, every podcast is packed with biblical advice . . . and lots of laughs.

Learn more, including how to access FREE DEVOTIONS FOR SUPER AVERAGE FAMILIES.

Delightful Stories of Flying Adventures by Linda Street-Ely

Delightful stories of flying adventures

By Linda Street-Ely

My husband and I are co-pilots and co-authors. We’re in our fourteenth year now as columnists in our local newspaper, with a unique topic. We write about aviation, but we write for the non-flying general public. We aim to put a face to a world that’s unfamiliar to many, with exciting stories about people, places, and adventures.

About half the stories are of our own flying adventures in our Grumman Cheetah, including cross-country air racing, fly-in campouts, and a punkin-chunkin’ contest. The rest cover a wide variety of perspectives and the many faces of aviation: a grandma who learned to fly after her husband’s heart attack made him medically unfit to exercise the privileges of his pilot certificate; a professional percussionist from the Houston Symphony who loves to fly rescue pets to new forever homes; a world-class artist who traded in flying for art (and we’re all better off for it). There’s adorable little Lauren (now grown up and teaching others how to fly) who we met when she was eight years old and flying with her dad in their family Bonanza; a wounded warrior shot in the neck in Iraq whose determination brought him to air racing; mission flying in Mexico and Africa. There’s even a beautiful sample of a pilot’s letters home while flying in Burma at the end of WWII.

Linda Street-Ely

About two months before the tenth anniversary of “Ely Air Lines,” I got the wild idea to select our top stories since day one of the column and put them into a book. Thinking we could have a book out in two months was not a realistic goal, but two and a half years and thousands of edits later, a two-volume set emerged. One hundred stories selected from 520 written to inform, entertain, and delight readers from all walks of life.

We selected stories of crop dusters, corporate pilots, aerobatics, and even some with arts and culinary themes. Basketball players, a NASA statistician, a jockey, farmers, and priests show the wide reach of aviation. And there are many stories of triumph. We love those best, the story of the human spirit, created by God.

We recently started a publishing company, Paper Airplane Publishing, LLC, and are looking forward to signing up new authors. Meanwhile, our weekly column continues, and we each have our own writing projects, while also employed full time in aviation. Mike is working on his next book that compares flying of forty years ago with today. I just finished my first play, a story about a notorious ancestor in medieval Scotland, and I am now working on a sequel. My testimony of faith in the midst of tragedy is what got me started writing books, and a short children’s book came after that.

Writing the two volumes of Ely Air Lines: Select Stories from 10 Years of a Weekly Column was an adventure in itself, which we think is reflected in the stories.

Ely Air Lines: Select Stories from 10 Years of a Weekly Column

Volumes 1 and 2 (sold separately)

Delightful stories of flying adventures from around the globe. Adventurous and heartwarming. Written by pilots.

Ely Air Lines is a captivating 2-volume set of 100 short stories that inspire and educate, written by pilots Mike Ely and Linda Street-Ely. Step aboard to enjoy a collection of stories that explore the vast realm of the flyer’s world.

Buckle up and fly with Mike and Linda to discover amazing people, interesting places, and the conquest of flight. 

EXCERPT

A Picture of Courage

Linda: I met Chris Sullivan as a fellow cross-country air racer in 2016. It was his first race, and he was admittedly nervous.

“I’d always wanted to learn to fly. When I discovered Able Flight, I submitted my application for a scholarship and was selected to come to Purdue University for training.”

Chris’ first flight was in May 2014 in a Sky Arrow, an aircraft equipped with adaptive rudder controls, when he entered Able Flight’s intensive training course nine years after being hit by sniper fire.

It was May 21, 2005. The 256th Infantry Brigade, Louisiana Army National Guard, had been tasked with locating and disarming IEDs just outside Baghdad Airport. As the team worked carefully, the enemy watched. Suddenly, bullets flew, one entering Chris’ neck and exiting his back.

Nobody else was hit. Sergeant Sullivan lay on the ground, bleeding from his neck. He couldn’t move or speak. His vocal cords burned but he felt no pain; the sniper’s bullet had severed his spine. His squad frantically laid down suppression fire and attempted to evacuate him. They were doing their job, just as they had been trained.

Carried to safety behind a Humvee, Chris could hear the radio. Apache helicopters were needed to blanket the area with more suppression fire for Blackhawk helicopters to swoop in for the rescue, but the Apaches were on other missions. He knew they were too far to reach him before he bled to death, but he wasn’t afraid.

He prayed, “Lord, if it’s time to bring me home, I’m okay with that, but I will fight it as long as I can because I have so much more to do.” Unable to speak well, he smiled, hoping it would calm his buddies as his blood spilled out.

Then, over the radio squelched the news: two Apaches were within three miles and on their way, hot and heavy—fully loaded with ammo!

God didn’t bring Chris home to heaven that day, and so began the long, painful road to recovery. Knowing his company would return from deployment in three-and-a-half months, he wanted to greet them, so he asked the doctors for an aggressive rehab plan. That reunion stateside was a great motivator, but once back home in Mire, Louisiana, doubt and fear prowled around him as he fought against post-traumatic stress. What was his purpose, now that he was paralyzed?

Chris found his purpose in helping veterans through the Veterans Administration, with empathy that only someone who has been there can have. Four years later, he joined Louisiana State Representative Rodney Alexander’s staff as a caseworker for wounded warriors.

He shared his story at fundraisers and despite his paralysis, he learned to scuba dive, went skydiving, and became a National Veterans Wheelchair Games silver medalist in snow skiing. And on the second anniversary of being wounded, our hero began dating his future wife, later witnessing another miracle—the birth of their son.

Chris worked hard at Able Flight, in ground school several hours a day and flying twice daily. Then, the night before his check ride, he fell ill with an infection that spread to his bones. Courageously, he fought back for a month and after a full recovery, he returned to Purdue to earn his wings.

Only two years after his first flight, he climbed out of his wheelchair and into the cockpit. The day was hot, so friends helped drape ice-cold cloths on his neck because his body couldn’t regulate temperature.

Engines started, props turned, and airplanes taxied to the runway. There in the Sky Arrow, eleven years after facing death in war, Chris Sullivan taxied in line and looked down the row of race planes. A tear came as he took the starting line, throttled up, and became: a race pilot. The trophy awarded to him symbolizes so much more than finishing first in his class in that race. It is the fight he wins every day and, “as long as I can, because I have so much more to do.”

Mike Ely, Linda Street-Ely

Mike Ely has logged thousands of hours over more than forty years as a professional pilot. He holds an airline transport pilot certificate with multiple type ratings and a flight instructor certificate. Mike has taught people to fly in small single engine airplanes, gliders, turboprops, and corporate jets. As a freight pilot and an international corporate pilot, he has flown through all kinds of weather, to many places, both exotic and boring. His love for writing was instilled by his father at an early age.

Linda Street-Ely is an award-winning, multi-genre author and playwright. She also holds an airline transport pilot certificate, a commercial seaplane certificate and a tailwheel endorsement. She has air raced all over the U.S., including four times in the historic all-women’s transcontinental Air Race Classic. Besides flying, Linda has a keen appreciation for great storytelling. She loves to travel the world, meet people, and learn about other cultures because she believes great stories are everywhere.

Together, Linda and Mike are “Team Ely,” five-time National Champions of the Sport Air Racing League, racing their Grumman Cheetah, named the “Elyminator,” and dubbed “The Fastest Cheetah in the Known Universe.” They live in Liberty, Texas.

BUY LINKS

Ely Air Lines Volume 1 – https://www.amazon.com/Ely-Air-Lines-Select-Stories/dp/1947677020/

Ely Air Lines Volume 2 – https://www.amazon.com/Ely-Air-Lines-Select-Stories/dp/1947677039/

3 SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

Website: Paper Airplane Publishing

Facebook: Paper Airplane Publishing

Twitter: Paper Airplane Publishing

June Foster: The Inn at Cranberry Cove

Twenty years ago, my husband and I lived in Washington state – in Olympia, the capitol. I love the Pacific northwest and frequently set my stories there. In fact, the first five or so were inspired by the forests of Douglas fir, majestic mountains, and lakes and streams that are perfect for fishing.

One weekend during our time in Washington, we decided to travel west as far as we could go until we reached the ocean. Our trip brought us to a delightful B&B in Ilwaco on the south end of Long Beach Peninsula in the southwest corner of the state, between the Pacific Ocean and the Columbia River. I hadn’t realized that a sleepy, historic fishing town nestled there.

The B&B was once an old place of worship, and today boasts of guest rooms, lush gardens, and a large meeting room where the sanctuary used to stand. At the time we were there, I hadn’t written my first book, but years later, upon thinking back to the lovely inn, my imagination began to percolate and The Inn at Cranberry Cove was born.

Today the B&B is owned by a sweet couple by the name of Leanna and Kevin Moos and is now called the Inn at Harbor Village. The picture on the cover of my book is the real inn that the Moos graciously allowed me to use.

An award-winning author, June Foster is also a retired teacher with a BA in Education and a MA in counseling. She is the mother of two and grandmother of ten. June began writing Christian romance in 2010. She penned her first novel on her Toshiba laptop as she and her husband traveled the US in their RV. Her adventures provide a rich source of information for her novels. She brags about visiting a location before it becomes the setting in her next book.

To date, June has written over twenty contemporary romance and romantic suspense novels and novellas. She loves to compose stories about characters who overcome the circumstances in their lives by the power of God and His Word. June uses her training in counseling and her Christian beliefs in creating characters who find freedom to live godly lives. She’s published with Winged Publications. Visit June at www.junefoster.com to see a complete list of her books.

Free for Kindle: You’re Beautiful & You’re Amazing

You’re Beautiful: Brilliant Things Happen when a group of girls and their mentors discover they’re beautiful.

Hayley Atkinson withdraws from her friends and new opportunities with the new mentoring group, Linked, after she is told a lie that she believes is true about herself.

Sabrina Wayson is a mentor in Linked who feels she can’t help encourage girls because she’s struggling as much as they are. Can they surrender the lies and find freedom?

The first book in the Surrendering Stinkin’ Thinkin’ series for Middle Grade/young teens/women of all ages by mother and daughter authors Julie Arduini and Hannah Arduini.

Today is the last day I have Restoring Christmas, Match Made in Heaven, You’re Beautiful and You’re Amazing free for Kindle. I hope you’ve taken advantage of these Valentine freebies. If you enjoy them, please leave a review on Amazon/BookBub/Goodreads. Thank you!

YOU’RE AMAZING: Beautiful things happen when a group of girls and their mentors discover they’re worthy.

Jazmin’s a natural at dance until a series of changes make her wonder if she should even keep up with her favorite hobby.

Lena’s a mom with young children overwhelmed with her schedule when a woman remarks that what Lena does isn’t even important.

Both Jazmin and Lena belong to Linked, a mentoring ministry where all ages encourage each other and build friendships.

Can these two surrender the lies they are believing and realize they are amazing?

The second book in the Surrendering Stinkin’ Thinkin’ series that can be read as a stand-alone for tweens, teens, and women of all ages by mother and daughter authors Julie Arduini and Hannah Arduini.

Free For Kindle: Match Made in Heaven

If you read yesterday, I’m have a Valentine’s promo where Restoring Christmas, Match Made in Heaven, You’re Beautiful and You’re Amazing are free for Kindle today and tomorrow. If you enjoy them, please leave a review on Amazon/BookBub/Goodreads. Thank you!

Beth Prescott wants to make a difference with the senior citizens she serves as a volunteer coordinator, but their matchmaking efforts leave her guarded. She’s experienced too much pain to make that leap again.Dean Kellerman returns to the Finger Lakes area to help his grandfather and heal his own broken heart. He’s recommitted his life to Christ, and doesn’t want any distractions.When his grandfather needs assistance with a senior program, it places Dean right in Beth’s path. Can these two surrender their pasts to Christ and have faith in each other and their future?

Free for Kindle: Restoring Christmas

I love promoting books for free on Kindle. This promo is good February 12, 13, and 14. If you enjoy it, please leave a review on Amazon/BookBug/Goodreads. Thank you!

Two broken hearts. One amazing God.

Holly Christmas left Geneseo Valley and her family’s holiday tourist attraction, The Christmas Mansion, as soon as she graduated. Now both her parents have passed, and Holly returns when her uncle needs her help running the mansion. On Holly’s first day back, a blunt middle-schooler proclaims Holly hates Christmas. His comment forces her to reconcile the past while planning for the mansion’s future.

Kevin Holt is invested in offering hope to students with challenges. His best friend’s son is in Kevin’s class, and Nathan needs guidance. Their community project placement at The Christmas Mansion is an opportunity to make a positive difference. When Nathan blurts out his thoughts to the beautiful co-owner, Kevin wonders if he has what it takes to help restore the mansion to its former glory, mentor Noah, and convince Holly Christmas she’s exactly where she needs to be.

Mary Vee: Use the Fodder from Life Experience to Craft Great Stories

Use the Fodder from Life Experiences to Craft Great Stories

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There was a story or two from my high school literature classes in which the author gave a voice to a main or minor character with mental health issues. Think autism or an adult with the mind of a child. Each one brilliantly written. Great skill was needed to imagine the shoes of such a character and to write their story from their perspective.

A story popped into my mind not long after my mom finished a five-year battle with dementia and went to live with Jesus. A story of Anders, a young master chef who, due to no fault of his own, suffered a head injury and lost the ability to remember. Imagine making the batter for cookies and not remembering if you had put in one or two cups of sugar. While the amount of sugar may seem trite, the moment-by-moment decisions we make each day springboard from memories—even something as simple as checking a calendar for recorded events.

I toyed with who the main character should be for this story. The observant nurse. The neighbor. The parent. It wasn’t until I’d written half the story when–like a potter sitting before her clay–I smashed the form, tossed it aside, and plunked a new lump of clay onto the wheel, letting Anders tell his own story.

Anders struggles to remember what happened from the first page to the last. Bits and pieces pop on a page before the memory fades. I’ve been asked why the story wasn’t longer. I shrug and say, this was all Anders could remember. Fortunately, he reveals what brought about his redemption before he forgets. Anders shows his appreciation to readers by providing his very own master chef recipes at the end of the book.

Significant memory loss can be frustrating for the inflicted. In time, my mom, and my character, Anders, smiled with a twinkle in their eyes when they realize they should know a person but had no clue who they were.

I was surprised to read about a real village in Denmark designed for adults with head injuries, dementia, etc. There are apartments with decoration themes from the fifties, sixties, etc., and those with career themes such as professorial, plumber, or the wealthy-high tea is served for these ladies and gentlemen. The cashiers, movie attendants, baristas, and more are all medical personnel. This village became Anders’ home.

This is such a sweet story of a community who helped beautiful people unable to remember a name, if they locked the front door, or took their meds, but have so much to offer. If you’re looking for a story that will warm your heart, Anders’ Redemption is the one.

Mary Vee –  Rock climbing, white-water rafting, and hiking top Mary’s list of ways to enjoy a day. She was homeless for a time, earned her MA in Counseling, and married an Air Force vet. Mary has been a finalist in several writing contests and writes for her King.

Mary’s newsletter takes readers on virtual trips, new adventures, and updates her recent works. Sail on a pirate ship, zip-line through Californian redwoods…there’s always something new. You can sign up on her website.

Amy R. Anguish: Writing Home

­­ Writing home: By Amy R Anguish

Contemporary Christian Romance

Amazon / Goodreads / Bookbub

About the Book

Christiana Jones dreamed her whole life of living in Huntsville, Alabama, so she can’t figure out why it doesn’t feel like home. Her relationships—on social media and in real life—seem shallow and empty. When she unearths a stack of her grandparents’ letters, it spurs an idea. Could she find something deeper with a penpal? 

Jordan White is taken aback when his cousin Tina suggests he become penpals with her childhood best friend. What could a Louisiana boy have in common with a girl two states away? After all, he’s happily settled on his family’s property and working the job he always wanted. But every letter they exchange has him wishing for more. 

As they grow closer through their written words, the miles between them seem to grow wider. Can love cross the distance and bring them home? 

What is the inspiration behind your story?

After my grandfather passed away in 2013, my grandmother who had been married to him for 66 years read his old letters every night. He’d been in the Korean war and written to her then and on several other occasions. She continued to treasure those letters (who none of us were allowed to see) until she passed away in 2018. And it got me thinking about how amazing their relationship was. And what would it be like if you had to have a relationship through letters only?

About the author

Amy R. Anguish grew up a preacher’s kid, and in spite of having lived in seven different states that are all south of the Mason Dixon line, she is not a football fan. Currently, she resides in Tennessee with her husband, daughter, and son, and usually a bossy cat or two. Amy has an English degree from Freed-Hardeman University that she intends to use to glorify God, and she wants her stories to show that while Christians face real struggles, it can still work out for good. 

Follow her at http://abitofanguish.weebly.com or http://www.facebook.com/amyanguishauthor 
Or https://twitter.com/amy_r_anguish 

Learn more about her books at https://www.pinterest.com/msguish/my-books/ 

And check out the YouTube channel she does with two other authors, Once Upon a Page (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEiu-jq-KE-VMIjbtmGLbJA) 

Excerpt from Chapter 1

“UGH. WHY DO I EVEN BOTHER?” And yet Christiana Jones continued scrolling down her social media feed too fast to see much. What was the point of looking? No one posted anything of importance. Nothing personal.

A recipe for coconut pecan pie. A meme asking if it was Friday yet, the poor cat in the picture looking half drowned. A political rant speculating about what the government was going to do to make people’s lives more miserable. Four new selfies from her coworker.

A childhood snapshot her best friend had dug up of Tina and cousin “Boomer”—adorable, but did he appreciate such an old photo being shared with hundreds of friends? A few pictures of former classmates’ cute kids. Okay. Those last few were personal. But the rest?

She closed the app and tossed her phone across the bed where she leaned against the headboard, too exhausted to even finish changing out of her scrub pants. The farthest she’d made it was removing her sneakers. She’d only picked up her phone to clear messages before getting sucked in. But what a waste of time.

Vanity, vanity, all is vanity. King Solomon definitely had it right. That and, There is nothing new under the sun.

She released a sigh and glanced through the window. A beautiful Friday evening in early October with nothing to do. No date. No plans. No energy. No motivation after her busy week. The cold and flu season was in full swing, and the pediatrician’s office where she worked had been swamped.

More than just the social media malarkey that had her down. Her whole life seemed humdrum. Her closest friend was three hours away. She’d lived in this Huntsville apartment, in her supposed dream town, for over two years now, and it still didn’t feel like home. The congregation where she worshipped was nice enough, but she hadn’t formed any connections. The girls she worked with were okay but didn’t hold enough in common with her for her to want to hang out with them outside of the office. And her neighbors . . . well, she evidently wasn’t very neighborly because she couldn’t remember meeting any of them.