Musings of a multi-genre author, passionate about faith, family, and all things books…
WHEN LIGHTHOUSES SHINE BRIGHTEST
What’s on your mind these days? Personally, I can’t stop thinking about lighthouses. Maybe it’s because I’m craving the ocean and traveling is not an option right now, or maybe it’s because it’s the one-year birthday of my novel, The Lighthouse Baby, 🙂 or maybe it’s just that in this current fog I long to see a literal beacon of hope shining bright. Whatever the reason, my heart has been drawn to the lifesaving lighthouse and how brightly it shines…
HOW TO FIND JOY THIS MOTHER’S DAY
How are you doing these days, friend? It seems while we are in this surreal COVID crisis focusing on masks and hand-washing and social distancing, our Mother’s Day has snuck up on us and we’re really not sure what to do with it. Isolate and celebrate? Is that even a thing? How do we go about finding JOY this Mother’s Day?
SIMPLE PLEASURES: BOOKS & BAKING
I just broke a mug. It slipped from my hand into the dishwasher and smashed. I have a teeny-tiny cut on my finger to prove it. Just a one-second lapse in concentration, that’s all it took to break into pieces. I wonder if that’s how many of us are feeling right now—fragile. Like everything could break into pieces if we have a one-second lapse in our “holding it together-ness”. We know we are not in this alone. We know we have a God who is bigger. But in these at-home moments of needing to do something familiar yet fulfilling, how are we coping? For me, it’s in the simple pleasures of books and baking…
EASTER SOLITUDE & SACRIFICE
This Holy Week is a little different, isn’t it? Usually, most of us are busy shopping and meal planning for our big Easter dinner with extended family and friends, or we’re planning to be away for the long weekend, or making sure our people have appropriate Easter outfits to wear. Not this year. Oh, we’ll make the best of it and have church online (maybe Easter pajamas will be a thing?) and have a shrunken Easter dinner for those under our roof. We’ll Zoom with loved ones and possibly get some fresh air—as long as we practice social distancing. And perhaps, just perhaps, in our solitude, we will see the sacrifice of the Saviour with fresh eyes…
THIS IS OUR MOUNTAIN TIME…
Hey, friend, how are you holding up? I’m guessing you are at home—feeling a little wonky and needing a little encouragement. In this week of crazy pandemic-panic, I want to offer you a virtual hug and whisper words of peace. I also want to share what God has set on my heart about this being our “mountain time” right now. Curious? Allow me to explain…
WHAT I READ THIS WINTER
Anyone else lunging toward spring, desperate for sunshine and warmth and flowers? We are nearly there, friends, and as I shake off the winter doldrums, perhaps the only aspect I’ll miss from the most frigid of seasons is the coziness of reading. You know what I’m saying—hands wrapped around a mug of something hot and delicious, feet snuggled in a pair of actual reading socks, a super soft blanket, and a really good book. Sigh. On reflection, I read a stack of amazing books this winter and I’m here to share six of my favourites with you right now…
Introducing… THE ORPHAN BEACH
FEB 18 is book release day for my latest Christian romantic suspense novel, The Orphan Beach! Oh, friends, I am so thrilled to share this story with you. This is the third in my “Flight to Freedom” series, all published by Anaiah Press within twelve months! We have faced fears, kidnapping, family secrets, stalking, romance, shooting, weddings, abandonment, and a whole lot of suspenseful drama, all with a message of hope. Always pointing to God as Rescuer, Redeemer, and Rock. So I’m delighted to introduce you to the new book on the shelf…
WHY YOUR MARRIAGE MATTERS
February seems to come and go with minimal fanfare, don’t you think? The shortest of months is also fondly referred to as the “month of love” with Valentine’s Day as its shining gem nestled right in the middle. Perhaps it’s a reminder for us to celebrate the fact that we are loved—every one of us, by our Heavenly Father. And perhaps it’s a perfect opportunity to check-in and make time for our marriages—because they matter…
FAMILY MIRACLE, FAITHFUL GOD
My twelve-year-old heart was crushed and confused as I listened to my parents. God had slammed into our family with grace and gumption the previous year when I witnessed my dad’s dramatic conversion from alcoholic to born-again Christian. But what was happening? Was my family going to crumble now that we had a foundation of faith?
MY “ONE WORD” FOR 2020
Happy New Year, friend— and Happy New Decade! As we part ways with 2019 and forge ahead into the very grandiose 2020s, do you have any goals or resolutions? It has become a practice in these parts to claim “one word” for the next twelve-month period… a word to ponder and pray over as the year progresses. Honestly, I was dying to use “clarity” for 2020 as it was just SO perfect (20/20 vision and all that) but it seems I have another word I am to hold front and center for this coming year: