Looking Back, Looking Forward

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Looking Back, Looking Forward

As an old year comes to an end, I always like to reflect on it on my personal blog, and I decided that post was worth sharing with my Inspired by Life and Fiction family on this first post of mine in the new year. So here is my slightly modified version of that post:

I don’t know about you, but I find it shocking that we just hit the one-quarter mark in the 21st century. And think of this: my grandmother—who was so much a part of my formative years—was born in the last quarter of the 19th century (1881). How amazing!

My Word for 2024: Shelter

As I’ve shared before, I begin praying every fall for a word for the new year. God’s answer to me for 2024 was the word “Shelter,” and the verses He led me to were these:

“One who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will lodge in the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalm 91:1“For on the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; He will hide me in the secret place of His tent; He will lift me up on a rock.” Psalm 27:5“You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the conspiracies of mankind; You keep them secretly in a shelter from the strife of tongues.” Psalm 31:20

God knew that there were moments coming in 2024 when I would need to take shelter in Him, when I would need to hide in His secret place. I’m so thankful His shelter is available to me, that I can take my troubles to Him and He hears me. And His shelter is available to you, too.

2024 Bible Reading and Studies

Last summer I discovered The Bible Recap, and I used it for reading the New Testament this past fall. I follow the reading plan for the day, then I answer the Study Guide questions, and finally I read/listen to the daily recap from The Bible Recap: One-Year Guide to Reading and Understanding the Entire Bible.

If you go to the linked Bible Recap website, you will find information for many free tools. You do not need to buy the book of questions or the Guide to Reading. You can find the plan in the Bible app so it is with you on your devise.

Note: I am using these same tools for reading through the Bible in 2025. For those who don’t know, I read through the entire Bible every odd-numbered year and have been doing so since 1997.

My Bible studies this year included:

The Book of John (BSF)He’s Where the Joy Is by Tara-Leigh CobbleLuke in the Land by Kristi McLellandJames by Matt ChandlerThe Apostles’ Creed by Matt Chandler2024 Releases and WIPS

I had two book releases in 2024, To Marry an English Lord (Feb) and Wishing for Mistletoe (Nov).

My works in progress in 2024 included To Capture a Mountain Man (releasing in February) and a new novella set in Kings Meadow (which will release in early spring). Watch my website for more information about both of those books.

Favorite Movies and Shows

I only went to the theater once this year, to see The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever. Oh, how I loved it. So good.

Without a doubt, Season 4 of The Chosen was a favorite. I’ve watched the episodes of the latest season numerous times, just as I’ve rewatched the earlier seasons again and again. And I am anxiously awaiting Season 5 in the spring.

I ended the year by beginning to binge watch all 14 seasons of Blue Bloods. I didn’t start watching that show until about season six, and I want to make sure to see it from start to finish. I was sorry to see it end as it was one of the best network shows on television.

Five Star Reads of This Year

I read 92 books in 2024. Most of them were winners. That’s because I read a lot of favorite authors so rarely am I disappointed. The books that earned 5 stars from me were:

Fiction:

Edenbrooke by Julianne DonaldsonThe Wednesday Wars by Gary D. SchmidtThe Little Liar by Mitch AlbomA Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

Non–Fiction:

How to Pray: A Simple Guide for Normal People by Pete GreigIt is Finished: A 40-Day Pilgrimage Back to the Cross by Charles MartinThe Grace and Truth Paradox: Responding with Christlike Balance by Randy AlcornLife in GeneralIn my reflection post of 2021, I shared that I hadn’t been sick all that year, perhaps because of social distancing. Well, I can’t say that of 2024. I had three major upper respiratory viruses that each lasted a full month with coughs that lingered long after I felt okay, plus a “regular” cold virus that made me miserable for a weekend. I guess I lost all my herd immunity during the social distancing and this year I paid for it. Ugh! I hope I’m over that nonsense.This summer I found a renewed joy in writing, in part because of participating in writing sprints with other authors, participation that I have continued throughout the fall and into winter. I have a hard time describing my feelings other than to say I am once again finding fun in the creative process of storytelling.I took a great college course in the spring on the study of history. While I enjoyed the class, it also taught me that I much prefer writing about history through my fiction. I was not born to be an academic historian with all the rules that go with it (i.e. no two or three sentence paragraphs).My Word for 2025

When God laid the word Redeemed on my heart for the new year, I felt a spark of excitement for what He has in store for me to learn throughout 2025. The verse He gave me was this: