Teaser Tuesday: Don’t Ask Me to Leave

I’m starting a new feature called “Teaser Tuesday”, where I share with you snippets of my favorite parts of my books (published and work-in-progress). I spent most of the night awake on the couch battling a terribly sore throat, which is what gave me the idea to share the scene below with you.

[image error]Cover design by Diane Turpin

In Don’t Ask Me to Leave, Rachel finds herself dealt a series of pretty harsh blows by life. She’s beaten down by it and struggles to find a path out of the maze of sorrow (to some negative consequences). Thank goodness Beau and Nadine are around to help her out:

The house looked peaceful as the truck swung into the driveway. Nadine’s heart thrummed, and she unbuckled her seat belt.

“Beau, why don’t you wait out here for a bit? I don’t want to embarrass her if she’s still in bed.”

“All right. But I’m here if you need me.”

His white and strained face betrayed his worry. It was sweet of him, but there was no reason to panic, was there? Surely she overslept.

Four knockout roses sat in pots in what had been the front flower bed. Rachel needed to water them or they’d die before they got in the ground. Why hadn’t she asked Nadine to help plant them?

Enough stalling.

Beau nodded, and Nadine squared her shoulders and marched up onto the front stoop. The key rattled as she put it in the lock.

“Rachel? Rachel, it’s Nadine. Honey, are you home?”

No answer. Warm, stale air drifted through the open door. Nadine wrinkled her nose and stepped into the foyer. She raised her voice. “Rachel? Rachel!”

A faint moan reached her ears, and Nadine rushed to the sound.

Rachel lay on the couch in the living room, covered in a jacquard throw. Tissues overflowed from a trash can beside her, and empty water bottles littered the end table.

“Sick.”

The pitiful, barely audible whimper went straight to Nadine’s heart like an arrow. She knelt next to the couch and put a tender hand on Rachel’s sweaty forehead. “Oh, honey. You’re burning up.”

Rachel’s face had turned pallid, with its sunken eyes and chapped lips. “And you look dehydrated. We have to get you to the doctor, baby. Can you sit up?”

Rachel’s head lolled. “Weak. Don’t feel good.”

“Honey, when was the last time you had anything to eat or drink?” Nadine smoothed the moist bangs off Rachel’s forehead.

“Some…some Cheerios. Yesterday morning.” Her raspy voice made Nadine shudder. “Keep throwing up everything. Water too.”

“I’ll be right back, sweetheart.” As Nadine hustled to the front door, she slipped on an area rug and threw out a hand to catch herself on the foyer wall. She stuck her head out and waved. “Beau! Hurry, please!”

He leapt from the truck and loped into the house. “What’s wrong?”

“She’s so sick, Beau. She’s caught something. Should I take her to the clinic or just go straight to the ER? I’m sure they’ll have to give her an IV no matter where I take her.” Nadine led him into the living room. “Can you carry her to the truck for me?”

Rachel’s eyes closed, and icy fear gripped Nadine. She couldn’t lose this baby too.

Lord, please, help this child. Put Your healing arms around her. Please, Lord.

The excerpt above is from chapter 16 of Don’t Ask Me to Leave.

Latest NewsTeaser Tuesday: Don’t Ask Me to LeaveFebruary 13, 2018Don't Ask Me to Leave / WritingI’m starting a new feature called “Teaser Tuesday”, where I share with you snippets of my favorite parts of my books (published and work-in-progress). I spent most of the night awake on the couch battling a terribly sore throat, which is what gave me the idea to share the scene below with you.
In Don’t Ask Me to Leave, Rachel finds herself dealt a series of pretty harsh blows by life. She’s beaten down by it and struggles to find a path out of the maze of sorrow (to some negative consequences). Thank goodness Beau and Nadine are around to help her out:
The house looked peaceful as the truck swung into the driveway. Nadine’s heart thrummed, and she unbuckled her seat belt.
“Beau, why don’t you wait out here for a bit? I don’t want to embarrass her if she’s still in bed.”
“All right. But I’m here if you need me.”
His white and strained face betrayed his worry. It was sweet of him, but there was no reason to panic, was there? Surely she overslept.
Four knockout roses sat in pots in what had been the front flower bed. Rachel needed to water them or they’d die before they got in the ground. Why hadn’t she asked Nadine to help plant them?
Enough stalling.
Beau nodded, and Nadine squared her shoulders and marched up onto the front stoop. The key rattled as she put it in the lock.
“Rachel? Rachel, it’s Nadine. Honey, are you home?”
No answer. Warm, stale air drifted through the open door. Nadine wrinkled her nose and stepped into the foyer. She raised her voice. “Rachel? Rachel!”
A faint moan reached her ears, and Nadine rushed to the sound.
Rachel lay on the couch in the living room, covered in a jacquard throw. Tissues overflowed from a trash can beside her, and empty water bottles littered the end table.
“Sick.”
The pitiful, barely audible whimper went straight to Nadine’s heart like an arrow. She knelt next to the couch and put a tender hand on Rachel’s sweaty forehead. “Oh, honey. You’re burning up.”
Rachel’s face had turned pallid, with its sunken eyes and chapped lips. “And you look dehydrated. We have to get you to the doctor, baby. Can you sit up?”
Rachel’s head lolled. “Weak. Don’t feel good.”
“Honey, when was the last time you had anything to eat or drink?” Nadine smoothed the moist bangs off Rachel’s forehead.
“Some…some Cheerios. Yesterday morning.” Her raspy voice made Nadine shudder. “Keep throwing up everything. Water too.”
“I’ll be right back, sweetheart.” As Nadine hustled to the front door, she slipped on an area rug and threw out a hand to catch herself on the foyer wall. She stuck her head out and waved. “Beau! Hurry, please!”
He leapt from the truck and loped into the house. “What’s wrong?”
“She’s so sick, Beau. She’s caught something. Should I take her to the clinic or just go straight to the ER? I’m sure they’ll have to give her an IV no matter where I take her.” Nadine led him into the living room. “Can you carry her to the truck for me?”
Rachel’s eyes closed, and icy fear gripped Nadine. She couldn’t lose this baby too.
Lord, please, help this child. Put Your healing arms around her. Please, Lord.
The excerpt above is from chapter 16 of Don’t Ask Me to Leave....

Monday Musings: The Soldier’s WifeFebruary 12, 2018The Soldier's Wife / WritingGood morning! Happy Monday! Today, I’d like to tell you a little bit about the progress on my next novel, currently titled The Soldier’s Wife.
The Soldier’s Wife, like Don’t Ask Me to Leave, is a modern adaptation of a Biblical story. In The Soldier’s Wife, I plan to examine the relationship dynamic of David, Bathsheba and Uriah.
 We don’t spend much time in Bible classes talking about Bathsheba; we focus mostly on David. If we do talk about her, we tend to be very negative. She’s generally viewed as a loose woman, free with her favors.
But is that fair?
When I think of Bathsheba, I feel terribly sorry for her. I can’t imagine the position she was in. It’s really easy to judge and say “I would never”, but we can’t truly know. Had she said no to the king, she was facing almost certain execution. While it’s easy to say we would do the right thing, I’d wager many of us would choose to save our own skins.
And then, after she did submit to David, she had one loss after another. Uriah was killed in battle, which surely affected her. Then, after a pregnancy that was most likely unwanted, she lost her infant child.
Bathsheba had a lot of sorrow to overcome in a very short while.
When I thought about her story, I can easily see it occurring in the present (even if we don’t necessarily have kings running around the United States forcing women to bend to their every whim).
I’m about eight chapters in to the rough draft now; it’s slower going than I’d like, but this is a busy time at work (and those paying gigs do come first). If you’d like to join my preview group and read the sneak peek, please let me know and I’ll send you an invite to the Facebook group.
Have a blessed day!...

Enter to WIN an eBook of Don’t Ask Me to Leave!February 3, 2018Announcement / Don't Ask Me to Leave / WritingThrough February 17, you can enter to WIN an eBook of Don’t Ask Me to Leave! Visit https://goo.gl/7t5jbe for more information and to enter for your chance to win!...

Where Could I Go?January 25, 2018General / WritingI’ve been struggling to think about what I want to say in response to the school shooting so close to my own town and the high school where I teach. It’s hard to put into words the rush and swirl of emotions I feel (and that I know so many others are struggling with). In October of last year, I wrote a guest blog post in reaction to the Antioch church shooting that I felt was appropriate to share with you. I’d like to share an excerpt with you  (you may read the full original post on Patti’s Porch at https://goo.gl/REoDja).
I lead what I would call a blessed life. I have two wonderful Christian parents. I have a husband who genuinely loves me and our three children, and works very hard to provide us with a comfortable life. I thoroughly enjoy my job as a teacher. The Lord has blessed us in so many ways.
But on September 24, life wasn’t so grand. That morning, a masked gunman entered a Tennessee church and opened fire on the congregants. While this certainly isn’t the first church shooting in recent history, it is one of the first that’s been within a half day’s driving distance.
I hadn’t had time for that tragedy to fade from my consciousness when, on October 2, a shooting in Las Vegas killed nearly sixty people and left hundreds of others wounded.
Last Sunday, as I sat in church, I found myself looking around the auditorium during the service in a way that I never really had before. I wasn’t seeing the building, or the faces of my friends. I was contemplating a potential path to safety for my family should a gunman enter. It shook me to my core.
I was thinking the same thing that countless other parents have before me—why did I bring a child into a world so full of sin? Where could I go for safety? How could I protect those I loved from the unseen face of Evil?
And then it hit me. Where could I go, indeed? I simply had to look to the Father.
That day, I was preoccupied about how evil the world has become, but I had forgotten something. Since Adam and Eve left the Garden, this world has been full of sin, suffering, and anguish. While the ancient Christians might not have had to worry about church shootings, they definitely faced persecution, fear, and evil.
Most of us know the story of Stephen, a “man full of God’s grace and power” (Acts 6:8). We can flip through the Bible and find many examples of persecutors. Pharaoh. King Nebuchadnezzar. King Saul. Ahab and Jezebel. And so many more.
It’s not just in the Bible. In 177 AD, Eusebius, a historian, told us of a group of Christians in what is now Lyon, France, being gathered, interrogated, and tortured. In more recent history, we have Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin, and countless others.
In other words, the world has always been full of sin. However, God’s word exists to provide us comfort.
In the aftermath of the Las Vegas massacre, many on social media decried the phrase “thoughts and prayers”. Prayers meant nothing, they insisted. Prayers are for sheep.
I agree. I am a sheep, and I am grateful that He is my Shepherd. Isaiah 40:10-11 tells us that “the Lord God will come with a strong hand and … he shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom.” Revelation 7:17 says “the Lamb … shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.”
As difficult as it might be to live in today’s world, so full of sin, fear, doubt, and anger, it can be easy to forget that we are loved by a Shepherd who will protect us from the wolves howling in our midst. It is He, and only He, who can wipe away the tears from our eyes.
For me, I will do what I can to raise my children safely in this world. We’ll lock our doors, learn how to look both ways before crossing the road, and other important things… but I refuse to raise my children with a fear of what may happen tomorrow. Life on Earth can truly be wonderful, but it simply cannot compare to the reward that awaits us.
Instead of living a life in fear of the evil that may be lurking around the corner, we’ll work on being like Matthew 5:14: “You are the light of the world; a city set on a hill cannot be hidden.” We will work our hardest to be good, to be faithful, and to spread God’s light as far as we can. If enough people do that, then we can certainly prevent evil from netting a stronger toehold. Either way, we can certainly look forward to a blessed life in Heaven with our Shepherd....

Guest Blog AppearancesJanuary 23, 2018Don't Ask Me to Leave / General / WritingGood morning! I just wanted to quickly share two guest blog appearances with you.
Yesterday, I was the featured guest on Main Character Monday, with an interview of the protagonist of Don’t Ask Me to Leave, Rachel Miller. You can visit Heather Greer’s blog and read the post here: https://goo.gl/6gwtmg. Heather’s book, Faith’s Journey, will soon be releasing from Mantle Rock Publishing. Learn more about Heather here: http://mantlerockpublishingllc.com/authors/heather-stearns-greer/
I will be a guest on Linda Fulkerson’s Ideas to Books Podcast in two weeks. Check back for a link soon, but if you’re interested in prior episodes, you can check out the podcast on iTunes now: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ideas-to-books/id1245507117?mt=2...