The night is far gone; the day is at hand.
So then let us cast off the works of darkness
and put on the armor of light.
Romans 13:12

When I first encountered the story behind Laurie Coombs’ newly released book, I couldn’t wait to read it. Honestly, I couldn’t imagine how she could ever forgive the man who took the life of someone she loved so much. I thought right away of how Corrie ten Boom was able to forgive the German guard who caused the death of her sister in Ravensbruck concentration camp. The book struck me as a modern-day story of the power of forgiveness.

From the very first page, I was amazed at Laurie Coomb’s bravery in sharing personal details of the events leading up to the crime, as well as the years of agony following this horrific event. As she searches for truth, she has the courage and tenacity to pursue a correspondence with the killer, even behind bars of a maximum security prison. She cares about him as a human being, knowing that despite what he took away from her, God still loves him and has a plan for his life.

She writes:

I began to see Anthony as a real person, just like me, with thoughts and feelings and life circumstances that molded and shaped him into the person he is. I began to question what happened in his life that allowed him to become the person who ultimately murdered my dad… As the days passed, I felt God’s nudge to write back. But the thought of engaging this man in correspondence was unsettling. I was standing on rocky ground, and every step I took would lead deeper into enemy territory–deeper into the pain of my past. It was scary, but I knew this was where God was leading.

Over the course of four years, Laurie and the man responsible for her father’s death, write letters. Through it all, they both begin to see a greater purpose for their own lives. Even a man imprisoned for a lifetime can still make an impact on the people around him. The book contains pictures that also bring the story to light, and its messages are applicable to any reader who is struggling with forgiveness. The truth sets all of us free.

Here is a recent interview with author Laurie Coombs telling her story to Anchor/Reporter: Kristen Remington on KTVN Channel 2 News:

From Litfuse Publicity:
Can God heal the deepest wounds and redeem what seems unredeemable? Laurie Coombs experiences God’s transforming and redemptive power in her new book, Letters from My Father’s Murderer. When her father was murdered, Laurie Coombs and her family sought justice―and found it. Yet, despite the swift punishment of the killer, Laurie found herself increasingly full of pain, bitterness, and anger she couldn’t control. It was the call to love and forgive her father’s murderer that set her, the murderer, and several other inmates on the journey that would truly change their lives forever.

Join Laurie in celebrating the release of Letters from My Father’s Murderer by entering to win a Kindle Fire!

One grand prize winner will receive:

• A Kindle Fire HD 6
• A copy of Letters from My Father’s Murderer

Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on July 20th. The winner will be announced July 21st on Laurie’s site.

About the Author:

In 2010, Laurie Coombs was called to love and forgive the man who murdered her father, which led to an exchange of letters between she and Anthony, her father’s murderer. During their correspondence, Laurie was healed from her past wounds, was given grace to forgive Anthony, and witnessed a powerful transformation in Anthony as Jesus brought him to repentance.

Laurie’s story is featured in Billy Graham’s new film, Heaven, part of the “My Hope with Billy Graham” series broadcast nationally in an effort to reach people with the message of the gospel.

Laurie writes on her blog to encourage others to draw close to God and follow Jesus despite fear or feelings of resistance. She is passionate about the topic of forgiveness and feels called to share the story God has entrusted to her in hope that, through her testimony, many may receive the freedom she has experienced through Christ. Laurie is a regular contributing writer and blogger for iBelieve.com and Crosswalk.com.

Thank you to Litfuse for allowing me to review a complimentary copy of this book.

It’s summer, and my stash of great books to read has grown. You’ll hardly find me anywhere without a book in my hand or at least one close by. Sometimes I can only snatch a quick page or two in the five minutes waiting for band or theater camp to end, but I love making progress through a novel. I even signed up for the Adult Summer Reading Club at our local library, which makes me a good role model for my kids, right? (Truthfully, I wouldn’t mind winning the grand prize night out on the town: dinner, movie, and spending money for a shopping spree!)

At the top of my summer reading list is Deborah Raney’s Two Roads Home, the second installment in her Chicory Inn series. I loved the first book, Home to Chicory Lane, which I reviewed last August here. I wasn’t surprised to learn Home to Chicory Lane is a 2015 Christy Award finalist, among several other prestigious awards. It captivated me because my husband and I are in the midst of parenting our own five children/teenagers, and the main characters Grant and Audrey Whitman are a few years further along, having reared five children who have left the nest and are now out into the world.

In the Chicory Inn series, Grant and Audrey Whitman have transformed their family home into a welcoming bed and breakfast. I enjoyed spending time with all of my favorite characters from book one, which focused on daughter Landyn and her struggles as a newlywed. The second book takes us into the home of the Whitman’s daughter Corinne, whose marriage to Jesse Pennington is being stressed to the breaking point due to his relentless travel schedule.

Corinne’s husband Jesse is good-looking and friendly, and one of his young female coworkers takes his outgoing nature the wrong way. She thinks he’s flirting with her, as they find themselves traveling together to various sales conferences, while Corinne stays home taking care of her and Jesse’s three young daughters. The plot is full of twists and turns, as this attractive single coworker takes a “Fatal Attraction” interest in Jesse and his family. I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough, wondering what would happen. I really put myself in Corinne’s shoes.

Jesse is surprised to find himself called into the office of his boss, at first wondering if he’s been promoted, but then he learns his spurned and angry coworker has decided to retaliate by launching a sexual harassment scheme, jeopardizing both Jesse’s career and personal life. Meanwhile, Jesse is propelled into some deep soul-searching, as well as an early mid-life crisis. He and Corinne are living in their recently built dream home, and their hefty mortgage and comfortable lifestyle prevent Jesse from quitting his job. Yet he feels something is missing, and he sometimes wonders whether he’s called to be a teacher.

I loved seeing how Grant and Audrey Whitman balance their empty nest and desire to operate a successful B&B with their roles as mentors of their adult children. I could also relate to the exhausted young mother, Corinne, who is wiped out by the daily demands of parenting toddlers and preschoolers. Deborah Raney’s skillfulness as a Christian author shows us how to follow God’s Way above the world. As the characters struggle, their faith emerges, and every decision leads back to Christ. This novel series is an excellent handbook for life, and I know I’ll return to it in years to come!

Now I have to wait until October for the release of Book #3, Another Way Home, which deals with daughter Danae’s difficulties with conceiving a child. Unlike her two sisters who have been quick to start their families, Danae finds herself visiting infertility clinics and wondering if she’ll ever become a mother. Fortunately, there’s a snippet of the upcoming third novel in the back section of Two Roads Home so we can already jump into what’s coming next!

If you love television dramas like Downton Abbey, here’s a present-time story set in the heartland of America, Missouri. This novel series would be interesting for book clubs to discuss, and the author includes a Group Discussion Guide in the back section, making it easy to share with friends. You can enter for a chance to win one of five books here!

About the Author:
DEBORAH RANEY’s first novel, A Vow to Cherish, inspired the World Wide Pictures film of the same title and launched her writing career after twenty happy years as a stay-at-home mom. She is currently writing a new five-book series, the The Chicory Inn Novels. Deb and her husband, Ken Raney, recently traded small-town life in Kansas––the setting of many of Deb’s novels––for life in the (relatively) big city of Wichita. They love traveling to visit four children and five grandchildren who all live much too far away. Visit Deb on the Web at www.deborahraney.com.

Here are more places where you can connect with author Deborah Raney:

Website: www.deborahraney.com.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deborah.raney
Twitter: https://twitter.com/authordebraney
Amazon.com: http://amazon.com/author/deborahraney
Instagram: http://instagram.com/deborahraney
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/deborahraney/
Blogs: http://novelgarden.blogspot.com
http://inspiredbylifeandfiction.com/
http://just18summers.com/category/a-happy-home/makeing-your-house-a-home/

Thanks to Abingdon Press and Litfuse Publicity for providing a complimentary book in exchange for my review.

I’ve been a fan of Deborah Raney’s books for quite some time, so I was happy to join in the tour telling people about her latest novel, Home to Chicory Lane. It’s the first installment in her Chicory Inn series, and I can already tell you I’m hooked!

Audrey and Grant Whitman have entered the “empty nest” season of life, with five kids grown and out of the house. Audrey has fulfilled her lifelong dream of turning their beloved century-old homestead into a charming bed-and-breakfast near Langhorne, Missouri. During opening weekend, family and friends come over to help celebrate, while future guests begin to book reservations.

It looks like nothing can go wrong…until their youngest daughter, Landyn, shows up, after driving all night from New York City, where she left her husband of six months behind. She’s hauling a trailer of newlywed furnishings, so now what? Audrey and Grant have gone heavily into debt to finance their new venture, and boomerang young adults are not exactly what they had in mind as guests.

Landyn is hiding a secret from her husband, Chase, and when her parents find out, they know Chase must be told. Yet he’s still in New York, broke, and trying to pursue his calling as an artist. Should he give up on his dreams to get back together with Landyn? And can she ever go back to him after their recent spat? You will just have to get a copy of this book to find out.

I loved getting into the minds of the characters and seeing how they think. Deborah has woven her faith so gracefully throughout the story as we see how Audrey and Grant deal with grown children making poor choices — time and time again! On Deborah’s website, you can see some really cool photographs of her characters, which inspired her writing. This series would make such a fun movie or TV mini-series, similar to “The Waltons.”

And while you’re visiting Deborah’s website, be sure to tour her beautiful writing studio in her new home in the big city of Wichita, Kansas. She’s an inspiration to all of us who are trying to carve out a tiny bit of creative space in the midst of family life.

Now, if you’re like me, and you love any excuse to travel, keep reading and find out how you can win a free weekend getaway!

*******

Deborah is celebrating the release of her new series with a $200 B&B Weekend Getaway and a Facebook author chat party.

 

 
One winner will receive:

• A B&B Weekend Getaway (via a $200 Visa cash card)
• Home to Chicory Lane by Deborah Raney

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on September 9th. Winner will be announced at the Home to Chicory Lane Author Chat Party on 9/9. Deborah will be hosting a heartfelt book chat, giving away prizes, and answering questions from readers. She will also share an exclusive sneak peek at the next book in the Chicory Inn series!

Don’t miss a moment of the fun; RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 9th!

About the Author:

Deborah Raney’s books have won numerous awards, including the RITA, National Readers Choice Award, HOLT Medallion, and the Carol Award, and have twice been Christy Award finalists. She and her husband, Ken, recently traded small-town life in Kansas—the setting of many of Deborah’s novels—for life in the (relatively) big city of Wichita, where they enjoy gardening, antiquing, movies, and traveling to visit four children and a growing brood of grandchildren who all live much too far away. Visit Deborah on the web at DeborahRaney.com.

A big thank you to those hard-working ladies at Litfuse Publicity for sending this book my way!

A few weeks ago, my daughter’s high school staged a production of Meredith Willson’s 1957 Broadway show, “The Music Man.” The story takes place in River City, Iowa, in the year 1912, so the costuming committee asked for volunteers to help make Edwardian hats for the women of the town. We showed up armed with glue guns, silk flowers, ribbon, tulle, feathers and an assortment of plain straw beach hats.

For several hours, we pretended to be milliners, designing and constructing hats that might have graced the heads of first-class passengers aboard the Titanic. I had more fun than I thought possible, despite burning my fingers with hot glue and needing lots of design help from my artistic teen daughter and other fellow milliners. When it was showtime, I was excited to see how a few hours of creative work helped transform a cast of modern teens into characters from a century ago.

So, when I heard about Carla Stewart’s latest novel, The Hatmaker’s Heart, I couldn’t wait to read it! I love books set during the Jazz Age, the roaring 20s, and this one promised to whisk me away to New York City, a welcome escape from the heat and humidity of summer in Georgia.

The story begins in 1922. Nell Marchwold has landed a job working in the Oscar Fields Millinery; she’s a rising star in the field of design, following her childhood dream of helping women realize their inner and outer beauty while wearing one of her handmade hats.

Nell’s life hasn’t been easy up until this point. The tragic death of her father in the Great War has forced her mother and younger sister to leave their beautiful estate in England and move across the Atlantic to live near relatives in the state of Kentucky. When Nell designs some hats worn by the fashionable elite at the Kentucky Derby, her talent is discovered by none other than Oscar Fields himself, and he invites her to New York to live with his niece and work as his junior apprentice.

But Oscar Fields is a difficult man to please. His constant criticism wears on Nell, yet she’s determined to learn and grow under his tutelage. When Nell’s unique designs begin to catch on, her boss holds her back from the limelight, claiming the stutter she’s had since childhood reflects poorly on his salon’s reputation.

An older, wealthy client recommends a therapist who can help Nell possibly overcome her speech impediment, and I found this part of the book interesting, as the doctor explores Nell’s past to gain understanding into why she stutters. In many ways, this reminded me of The King’s Speech, one of my favorite films, and we see how Nell’s therapy makes her even more determined as she overcomes personal obstacles.

There’s a steady source of tension between Nell and Oscar, as she’s offered the opportunity to partner with an up-and-coming clothing designer for his 1922 collection. Her boss constantly reminds her that her value comes only from him, and he owns all rights to her personal work.

Because Nell is British, publicity for her design work leads to an invitation from London to set up temporary shop overseas to possibly create hats for the upcoming royal wedding between Prince Albert, Duke of York, and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. I enjoyed reading this section of the book, which has Nell voyaging as a first-class steamship passenger, surrounded by high society and inspiration for her designs. She spends her afternoons aboard ship sketching ideas in her room. To me, she is like a novelist who spends time observing and writing, though her creations take shape not as books but as beautiful hats.

As time passes, we learn of Nell’s childhood friend, Quentin, with whom she has corresponded for years. Nell has many choices to make as far as what she wants to put first in her life: her career, her family on both sides of the Atlantic, her new and old friends, and Quentin. Through it all, she holds a Bible verse close to heart, handstitched by her grandmother: “Strength and honor are her clothing” (Proverbs 31:25).

Nell’s heart is being pulled in different directions, and she must decide what she’s willing to sacrifice for her dream, and what her dream truly is. The novel spirals deeper and deeper into Nell’s past secrets and her longings for the future. She reminded me so much of how I felt as a young 20-something, and I think this book will appeal to a wide range of readers. The Hatmaker’s Heart would be a fun selection for book clubs — the back contains a reading group guide, and it would lend itself easily to a roaring 20s themed party!

As I read each chapter, I loved envisioning Nell’s colorful Jazz-age fashions. I wondered if Zelda Fitzgerald would have frequented the Oscar Fields Millinery Shop, and I could even hear saxophone music in my head when Nell went out dancing with her flatmates. The author did a wonderful job researching so that I felt like I was there, ready to place my own order for a new hat.

Author Carla Stewart is hosting an amazing Jazzy Hatmaker’s Heart giveaway (see photo below) from her website. Not only can you win a copy of the book, she also has all sorts of goodies to share with you. Be sure to enter her contest by June 14!

Meet the Author:

Carla Stewart is the award-winning author of five novels. With a passion for times gone by, it is her desire to take readers back to that warm, familiar place in their hearts called “home.” She and her husband live in Tulsa and have four adult sons and six grandchildren (with one on the way!). Learn more at www.carlastewart.com.

Disclosure: Thank you to Litfuse for sending me a complimentary review copy.

I’ve been reading another fun book lately that has kept my mind happily occupied while inching through car rider pick-up lines. Smitten Book Club is the third book in the Smitten series, written by four well-known Christian authors: Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, Diann Hunt, and Denise Hunter.

Set in the cozy fictional town of Smitten, Vermont, each author contributed one section to the book, writing from the viewpoint of a character in the Fireside Book Club. Their individual stories fit together like pieces of a quilt, and it was hard to tell they weren’t all written by the same author.

Here’s the main plot: while hosting a rummage sale in support of club member, Molly, who has recently lost her firefighter husband in a tragic accident, Heather discovers an antique book with the title, A Gentlewoman’s Guide to Love and Courtship, penned by once-famous Smitten resident Pearl Chambers. She wonders whether this century-old tome may actually offer some wisdom for modern relationships and shares it with the other members of her book club.

Each chapter begins with a charming quote from Pearl Chambers, and I enjoyed seeing how the characters find something uniquely personal and relevant to apply to their daily lives. And there’s another surprise: a handwritten note tucked inside says the book offers clues to a gold mine hidden on the property belonging to Molly’s deceased husband. If she could only find the gold, perhaps she’d discover a way to salvage the expedition business her husband started … and save the home that’s been in his family for generations.

The book club members — Heather, Molly, Abby, and Lia — dissect Pearl’s book individually, trying to decipher the possible hidden messages that may lead to the treasure of gold. I especially loved reading Kristin Billerbeck’s section focusing on the character of Abby, a librarian who relates to the world through her favorite Jane Austen literary heroines. She also tackles her sleuthing adventures in a way similar to Nancy Drew, decoding words with hidden meanings.

I’ve always relished the hilarious chick-lit books by author Kristin Billerbeck, and I interviewed her several years ago on my blog here. Colleen Coble also visited Mom 2 Mom Connection a few years back, and I reviewed Diann Hunt’s book, RV There Yet for Christian Women Online. I was sad to read that Diann Hunt passed away from cancer right before this book went to press, so it must have been bittersweet for the four writers to work together one last time. The authors’ collaborative blog, Girls Write Out, has been one of my favorite spots to visit for years.

I missed reading the first two books in the Smitten series, but since I enjoyed this one so much, I’ll have to find copies of the first two and get caught up. Keep reading below to learn more about upcoming events surrounding this book’s release!

*****

The Smitten gals are back with their newest release, Smitten Book Club! Colleen Coble, Kristin Billerbeck, and Denise Hunter are celebrating with a Kindle Fire giveaway, a Facebook party on February 20, and a nationwide book-club brunch on March 22.

 
One winner will receive:

• A Kindle Fire HDX
• The Smitten books (Smitten, Secretly Smitten, Smitten Book Club)

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on February 20th. Winner will be announced at the Smitten Book Club Facebook Author Chat Party on February 20th. Connect with Colleen Coble, Denise Hunter, and Kristin Billerbeck for an evening of book chat, trivia, laughter, and more! The Smitten gals will also be taking questions from the audience, giving away books and gift certificates, and sharing news about their upcoming nationwide Smitten Book Club brunch on March 22nd. (Sign up to host today!)

Don’t miss a moment of the fun; RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 20th!

Sign up to host a Smitten Book Club Brunch on March 22nd!

Meet the authors:

RITA-finalist Colleen Coble is the author of several best-selling romantic suspense novels, including Tidewater Inn, and the Mercy Falls, Lonestar, and Rock Harbor series.

Christy Award finalist and two-time winner of the ACFW Book of the Year award, Kristin Billerbeck has appeared on The Today Show and has been featured in the New York Times. Her books include A Billion Reasons Why and What a Girl Wants.

Denise Hunter is the award-winning and best-selling author of several novels, including A Cowboy’s Touch and Sweetwater Gap. She and her husband are raising three boys in Indiana.

Diann Hunt has lived in Indiana forever, been happily married forever, loves her family, chocolate, her friends, her dog, and, well, chocolate. Diann lost her courageous battle with cancer in December 2013.

Blogger’s Note: I received this book from Litfuse in exchange for my honest review.

January is a month of fresh beginnings for me. I celebrate a birthday, for one thing, and I always enjoy having the chance to sit down with a notebook and plot out a few plans and goals for the new year. I’ve been keeping a journal, off and on, since I was in college.

Back when I was 19, I lived in a dorm and needed a “quiet place” to go to pray, so writing gave me a chance to slip away from reality and focus on God. Not much has changed in that respect. Writing is still my best way to connect to the Almighty.

That’s why I got really excited when the opportunity came my way to read Robin Lee Hatcher’s latest novel, A Promise Kept. It’s a contemporary story about a woman struggling with painful choices, trying to discern God’s will for her life. The main character, Allison Kavanagh, needs time to heal from a wounded heart, and she retreats to a log cabin she inherited from her Great Aunt Emma. While living there, she discovers a trunk full of old diaries, written by her great aunt, and these diaries from the late 1920s/early 1930s play a significant role in how Allison moves forward in her life today.

I loved the whole premise of the book, and the setting in the beautiful mountains north of Boise, Idaho, gave me a chance to escape to a place quite different from my native Georgia. Once I started reading, I couldn’t put it down. Allison and her husband, Tony, have recently divorced, after being married for over two decades. The day Allison issued her husband an ultimatum — to change his ways or leave — she thought she’d save him. Instead, he walked out, leaving her with a broken heart, broken marriage, and disappointment that she’d misunderstood God.

Her move to small-town life in the area of Aunt Emma’s restored rustic cabin gives her ample time to explore her past, as well as the mysteries that begin to unravel from Emma’s stash of hidden diaries. Strangely, she also discovers a beautiful vintage wedding dress in the trunk, as well as a photograph of a handsome stranger. But how can this be? Her self-reliant great aunt never married!

Allison, flanked by her cute papillon puppy, Gizmo, begins to develop relationships with people in her new town. She attends church and discovers people in her congregation who are also suffering and seeking God’s will. Her grown daughter, Meredith, visits from Texas, and continues to seek ways to draw her mom and dad back together. It’s awkward … but has her ex-husband, Tony, truly started to change?

I love how the author allows readers into both women’s lives through their diaries: we see the day-to-day life of Emma as she slips from the decade of the Roaring 20s into the Great Depression of the 1930s. Then Allison, inspired by her Great Aunt, also begins to write in a journal. It made me see how a woman’s faith survives through her words, powerful even generations later.

The most shocking thing about the book comes at the end — I’d love for you to read it, so I don’t want to spoil it for you! But I will say that the author confesses in a personal “note to readers” this is the most intimate book she’s ever written (out of more than 70 novels!) because it’s based on the true story of her own life. Wow! So I loved this book on another level: I loved learning how a writer transforms real life into the art form of a novel. Beautifully done!

I hope you can read A Promise Kept. I found it spiritually uplifting, as Allison contemplates scripture and how prayer can affect one’s circumstances. I felt like the character had become a personal friend by the time I finished, and of course it made me want to go write in my own journal. This would be a wonderful novel for a book club to share, as it also contains discussion questions at the back.

If you’d like to read A Promise Kept, keep reading below, to find out how you can “meet” the author and enter a giveaway to win a copy of her book!

**********

Don’t miss Robin Lee Hatcher‘s stunning new novel, A Promise Kept. Robin is celebrating with a fun giveaway and an encouraging Facebook Author Chat Party.

 One winner will receive:

• A Kindle Fire HDX
• A Promise Kept by Robin Lee Hatcher

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on February 6th. Winner will be announced at the “A Promise Kept” Facebook Author Chat Party on the 6th. Connect with Robin and friends for an evening of encouraging book chat, prizes, and an exclusive look at Robin’s next book!

Don’t miss a moment of the fun; RSVP today by clicking JOIN at the event page. Spread the word—tell your friends about the giveaway and party via FACEBOOK or TWITTER. Hope to see you on 2/6!

Meet the author:

Robin is the author of 65+ novels and novellas. Her home is in Idaho, where she spends her time writing stories of faith, courage, and love; pondering the things of God; and loving her family and friends. Learn more about Robin at: http://www.robinleehatcher.com.
Blogger’s note: I received this novel, complimentary, from Litfuse.

Welcome to the 12 Pearls of Christmas blog series!
 
Merry Christmas from Pearl Girlsâ„¢! We hope you enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from the authors who were so kind to donate their time and talents! If you miss a few posts, you’ll be able go back through and read them on this blog throughout the next few days.
 
We’re giving away a pearl necklace in celebration of the holidays, as well as some items from the contributors! Enter now below. The winner will be announced on January 2, 2014, at the Pearl Girls blog.

If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Mother of Pearl, Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace, or one of the Pearl Girls products (all GREAT gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.

A Teenage Pregnancy
by Robin Jones Gunn

It was early, early morning, that delicate time of day just before sunrise when it seems as if all of creation is still asleep.

In the cold, gray light she gazed at the infant in her arms. He was less than an hour old and so, so small. Instinct prompted her to draw her newborn close that he might feel the rhythm of her heart. He curled his tiny hand around her finger and she smiled. His eyes closed, and with feathered breath he gave way to the blessed sleep that follows such a long journey.

In weary awe she studied his face, his ears, his nose. He was here. He had come at last.

A single tear fell from her eye and rolled across his cheek. She kissed the tear away but could not kiss away the memories that came with the tears; memories of the day she found out she was pregnant. How exhilarated she felt and yet how terrified. She was young, and there was much she didn’t understand.

Trying to justify her condition to her parents proved more difficult than she’d hoped. But the most excruciating memory was the moment she stood guileless before the man she hoped to one day marry. She had no words to make him understand the awful truth—the child she carried was not his.

Leaving seemed to be her only option. A gracious aunt took her in and welcomed her with open arms. From the moment she arrived she was showered with motherly words of hope and sisterly touches of love. Week by week, month by month, the child inside her grew.

Was it a miracle when she returned home, her belly round, her face flushed, and found him there?

What prompted this man to take her back and make her his bride? Did he now believe what she had tried to explain all along, that none of this was her own doing?

When the time was right they left their small town together, as husband and wife, with her due date rapidly approaching. The labor began—tightening her abdomen with a force she had never before imagined. Perspiration streamed from her forehead. The contractions multiplied with a frenzied urgency until the need to push overwhelmed her young body, and the baby was born.

Nothing of the past mattered anymore. He was here. Naked, perfect, quivering in her arms. With a thrill of hope, she believed that her life, her world, would never be the same.

Now as the first silver streaks of dawn pierced through the cracks in the stable, she tenderly wrapped her sleeping babe in swaddling clothes and laid him in the manger.

Robin Jones Gunn, bestselling author of the much-loved Christy Miller Series and the award-winning Sisterchicks® series, has had more than 4.5 million copies of her books sold worldwide. Her frequent speaking engagements have taken her around the globe. Robin and her husband live in Hawaii and have a grown son and daughter. You can learn more at Robin’s website.

Welcome to the 12 Pearls of Christmas blog series!
 
Merry Christmas from Pearl Girls™! We hope you enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from the authors who were so kind to donate their time and talents! If you miss a few posts, you’ll be able go back through and read them on this blog throughout the next few days.
 
We’re giving away a pearl necklace in celebration of the holidays, as well as some items from the contributors! Enter now below! The winner will be announced on January 2, 2014, at the Pearl Girls blog.

If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Mother of Pearl, Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace, or one of the Pearl Girls products (all GREAT gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.

Do You Hear What I Hear?
by Cynthia Ruchti

To shepherds? Really, God? You crafted a birth announcement that was delivered first to shepherds? The story’s become so familiar to us, so easy for us to visualize because of all the Christmas pageants we’ve witnessed over the years—all the fourth-grade boys in plaid robes with a homemade shepherd staff, carrying a cloth lamb from the toy department that plays “Jesus Loves Me” if you pull the ring where an umbilical cord should be.

Theologians speculate the reason for shepherds as the audience for the holy pronouncement could be as intricate as a genetic retracing of the Baby’s heritage back through history to King David, who started his career as a shepherd.

Or it could have been simpler than that. Maybe shepherds were the only ones listening that night.

“Nearby shepherds were living in the fields, guarding their sheep at night,” Luke 2:8, CEB. The biblical story tells us that the shepherds weren’t sleeping but were on guard, watching, when the news about Jesus came to them.

Distractions were few. Hills, sheep, other shepherds, a low fire, and a wide expanse of sky overhead—a dark sky that held the same stars night after night, until this one.

I wonder if any of the shepherds brought their families to the fields. I wonder if in the tent was a hardworking woman nearing the end of an exhausting day. She’d barely gotten the evening meal cleaned up when she had to start thinking about what her family and the other shepherds would need for breakfast. Soak the grains. Check the progress on the sheep’s milk cheese. And try to get those kids to settle down.

“Stop annoying your brother. Caleb! Last warning. Josh, get your fingers out of your sister’s ears. Turn down that video game. You can’t listen to the radio and watch TV at the same time. Turn one of them off. Better yet, both of them! Who’s singing? What’s that sound? Do you hear what I hear?”

What noise do I need to turn off in my life in order to hear the first notes of the angel’s song?

Another noisy Christmas party. Another trip to the department store for stocking stuffers. Another round of Christmas CDs. Another Christmas special on TV. Another Facebook post to share—the true meaning of Christmas. A text about the practice time for the Christmas program at church. Another phone call about travel plans. Brain waves clanking into each other, making a cacophony of noise.

Shutting down one layer at a time. Unplugging. Keeping even “Silent Night” low so I can silence my night and hear the downbeat of “Glory to God in the highest.”

Cynthia Ruchti is an author and speaker who tells stories of Hope-that-glows-in-the-dark through her novels and novellas, devotions, nonfiction, and through speaking events for women and writers. Of seven books on the shelves currently, her latest releases are the novel When the Morning Glory Blooms (Abingdon Press Fiction), the nonfiction Ragged Hope: Surviving the Fallout of Other People’s Choices (Abingdon Press Christian Living), and several dozen of the devotions in Mornings With Jesus 2014 (Guideposts). Spring of 2014 will see the release of another novel—All My Belongings, also from Abingdon Press Fiction. You can connect with her at www.cynthiaruchti.com or on Facebook.

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Welcome to the 12 Pearls of Christmas blog series!

Merry Christmas from Pearl Girls™! We hope you enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from the authors who were so kind to donate their time and talents! If you miss a few posts, you’ll be able go back through and read them on this blog throughout the next few days.

We’re giving away a pearl necklace in celebration of the holidays, as well as some items from the contributors! Enter now below! The winner will be announced on January 2, 2014, at the Pearl Girls blog.

If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Mother of Pearl, Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace, or one of the Pearl Girls products (all GREAT gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.

My Gift to the King
by Sheryl Giesbrecht

It was a week before Christmas. A woman in the rush of her last-minute shopping bought a box of fifty identical greeting cards. Without bothering to read what the card said, she quickly signed and addressed all but one of them. A few days after they had been mailed she came across the one card that hadn’t been sent. She was horrified to read, “This card is just to say, a little gift is on the way!”

Gift-giving is just one of our many Christmas traditions. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only son, Jesus, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Truly Jesus is the best gift we would ever want to receive.

One year a friend gave me a Christmas devotional book that turned my holiday traditions upside down. Anne Graham Lotz shared her custom of asking King Jesus what gift he would like for his birthday. God wants us to give freely out of our love for him as an act of worship. This process of intentionally and sacrificially giving a “love gift to my King” is something I have added to my personal Christmas traditions. I wonder, have you ever thought about giving Jesus a gift? Maybe this year you might ask Him what He would like you to give Him.

Each year, as the Christmas holidays approach, I ask the King what he would like for his birthday. I remember Anne Graham Lotz’s criteria: “Something I would not do except the King requested it. And it is something I could not do except the King enabled me,” (Christmas Memories by Terri Meeusen pg. 159).

One year the King began asking me for His gift in September when a local high school contacted me to develop a truant program. I didn’t feel qualified. Lotz’ words rang in my mind: “Something I would not do except the king requested it. And it is something I could not do except the king enabled me.” “God, not me,” I argued. I remembered what God brought me out of; I was a rebellious and promiscuous teenager, chain-smoker, alcoholic, drug addict, and drug dealer who cut class all but five days my junior year of high school. At age seventeen, I went to work at a Christian camp and there I was shown the love of God through the experience of working transformed believers. I was shown God’s love could cover a multitude of sins. Now He asked me to share this same love with those who are looking for love in all the wrong places. I committed to doing the King’s bidding.

What gift will you give your King this year? Maybe God is asking you to serve in your child’s classroom at school or teach a Sunday school class. Or maybe God is calling you to prayer or to spend more time with Him? Maybe Your King is asking you to give Him control over a situation?

“Something I would not do except the King requested it. And it is something I could not do except the King enabled me.” Ask the King for His gift suggestion. When He impresses on your heart the gift He desires, offer it to Him as your gift of thanks for His indescribable gift, His Son, Jesus.

“Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift.” (I Cor 9:15)

Welcome to the 12 Pearls of Christmas blog series!
 
Merry Christmas from Pearl Girls™! We hope you enjoy these Christmas “Pearls of Wisdom” from the authors who were so kind to donate their time and talents! If you miss a few posts, you’ll be able go back through and read them on this blog throughout the next few days.
 
We’re giving away a pearl necklace in celebration of the holidays, as well as some items from the contributors! Enter now below. The winner will be announced on January 2, 2014, at the Pearl Girls blog.

If you are unfamiliar with Pearl Girls™, please visit www.pearlgirls.info and see what we’re all about. In short, we exist to support the work of charities that help women and children in the US and around the globe. Consider purchasing a copy of Mother of Pearl, Pearl Girls: Encountering Grit, Experiencing Grace, or one of the Pearl Girls products (all GREAT gifts!) to help support Pearl Girls.

New Beginnings
by Sharron Cosby

Christmas. The mere mention of the word sends thoughts and memories skittering like a box of spilled ornaments. Some roll toward sweet remembrances of times shared with family. Others bounce to the let’s-not-go-there corner of our minds.

I recall Christmas 2009. The one I wanted to cancel. My only son is an addict, and this was his worst year ever. I had convinced myself it would be his last, assuming he would be in prison or dead by the next Christmas. I told my daughters we would exchange gifts and have our usual holiday dinner, but no tree or decorations. I couldn’t dredge up the emotional energy to plaster contrived cheer around the house.

I’m usually the decorator, gift purchaser, food preparer, and mess cleaner-upper. Executing the necessary holiday tasks takes time and effort. Worrying about my son had left me drained of the required get-up-and-go. I couldn’t do it. Thank goodness for online shopping; at least there would be presents to hand out.

My pastor’s message four days before Christmas cut straight through my Scrooge-like attitude. His sermon points were: The holidays are too much trouble, count your blessings, and forgive someone.

Considering Christmas too much trouble reflects a selfish attitude, according to my pastor. What if Jesus had thought that way? My icy heart began to thaw.

The second point, count your blessings, stopped me dead in my tracks. Count blessings with a broken heart? I considered my husband’s love and my two daughters who have stood by their brother. I smiled as I pictured the faces of my four grandsons and the joy they brought our family. Yes, I had many blessings to number.

The third was the hardest: forgiveness. Forgive my son for the pain and suffering he had caused? “God, you can’t be serious,” I protested. “We’ve spent thousands of dollars on him, he’s broken our hearts, and he’s in worse shape than ever before.”

“Forgive him,” the Spirit whispered.

Tears slid down my face as I chose to forgive my son. No strings attached.

After church I headed home with a changed attitude. When my husband left for work, I retrieved the ornaments, dragged the Christmas tree from the garage, and set it up, my gift to the family. Decorating our tree with the children’s handmade ornaments is always a joint project, but that day I worked alone. I held the clothespin reindeers, popsicle stick picture frames, and monogramed angels and remembered the good times.

With tear-filled eyes, I watched as amazement etched the faces of my daughters when they came to our home Christmas morning and saw the decorated tree. “Mom! You put up the tree after all,” they said.

The biggest surprise of the day came when our daughter’s boyfriend knelt in front of her and asked, “Will you marry me?”

The discouragement of addiction was replaced with the joy of new beginnings, which is, after all, the message of the Christ Child.

Sharron Cosby has been married to Dan for thirty-nine years, is Mom to three adult children and “Mimi” to five grandchildren. Her family was rocked by her son’s drug addiction for fifteen years until he laid it down on February 18, 2010. She uses her life experiences to offer hope and encouragement to families caught in the chaos of addiction. Sharron is available to speak to groups on addiction related topics. Sharron recently published her first book, Praying for Your Addicted Loved One: 90 in 90, a ninety day devotional for families in recovery or those wanting to be. Receive weekly encouragement at her blog, www.efamilyrecovery.com, and Twitter @sharroncosby or contact her at moc.liamg@ybsocnorrahs.

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